Kid Sister
by thedefectivevoid
Summary: Dark grey eyes met black and the woman gave the man a playful smile that he hadn t seen in years. Greg Universe dropped the hose he was holding onto the road and his face had disbelief written down all over it. "Sam!""Don t wear it out, brother man." Au where Greg has a younger sister and she wants him back! To what extent will the Gems go to make him stay? Pearl/oc
1. prologue

**SUMMARY: Dark grey eyes met black and the woman gave the man a playful smile that he hadn`t seen in _years._ Greg Universe dropped the hose he was holding onto the road and his face had disbelief written down all over it.**

 **" _Sam?!"_**

 **"Don`t wear it out, brother man."**

 **What do we really know about Greg Universe, other than the fact that he and former gem rebel leader Rose Quartz had loved each other and had a son together? What was his life like before he became a rock star? What if Greg had had _a younger sister?_ Where would she fit into all this?**

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 **Author`s note:**

 **Hey there! First off; _wow, thanks!_** **You have no idea how happy you made me when you decided to click onto my fic and take the time to read it. However, this is the first work that I`ve posted and there may be certain mistakes throughout the story that I missed. Don`t hesitate to set me straight and point them out. Please do. Maybe I`ve got certain facts wrong about the characters or anything.**

 **This is set loosely from the canon series that we all enjoy but not really. More like an AU more than anything actually.**

 **Disclaimer: Steven Universe belongs to the amazing Rebecca Sugar and Cartoon Network. None of it is mine, sadly, except for Sam (she`s my OC).**

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 **Prologue**

The name of the small town, _Beach City_ , was highly uncreative but the woman supposed she`s seen and heard worse names on her travels. She peeked her eyes above the metallic pink of her shades and squinted past the bright rays of the sun through her car`s tinted front windshield. The woman pulled over by the town`s welcome sign and killed the engine.

Admittedly, it was a long and tiring journey but she made it. A warm feeling bloomed in her chest over her victory and she allowed a small smile to form on her lips. The woman sighed as she leaned her body forward against the wheel, but groaned when the slight change in body posture pulled something in her back. Dark grey eyes momentarily widened and she bit on her lip in irritation.

Her muscles were probably sore from the lack of motion while she was driving, especially those in her lower body. She took off her seat-belt and popped the driver`s seat door open and felt a refreshing in the air as it gently blew against the smooth fabric of her jeans. It was hotter than she`d expected it to be, but the woman guessed that that would probably be the main case if you lived by the beach.

She hooked a hand to the door frame and pulled her form out with a grunt; and aimed, with a displeased frown, to work out more over the current weight of her body. Once outside, the woman stretched her arms up and twisted her body around and closed her eyes over the pleasure of her bones popping back into place. She went to the back of the car and took off her shades… and was momentarily blinded by the sunshine.

The air smelled of salt and raw fish, she realised, and the woman smiled on the memories that flocked her mind over it. She had been to this place several times when she was younger and had even had family living here once. Her great aunt and uncle on her mother`s side who had shared a similar love to aviation were especially kind to her and her brother; probably because they hadn`t any children of their own.

The woman leant her back against the warm metal of the car`s bonnet and crossed her arms on her chest. It would be a smooth way downhill from here on now and she was slightly giddy with excitement and anticipation to feel the rough sand underneath her feet and between her toes once again after a very long time, and even the cold of the seawater against her legs.

Of course, she was here on account of business. But being on business does not mean she couldn`t enjoy herself while in the process.

She pulled a simple blue hairband out from her left wrist and tied her wavy, luxurious brown hair up into a high ponytail. It was getting hot underneath the layers of clothing. She mentally listed some of the things that she would do once she reached the boardwalk.

First off she`d go to the convenience store and buy herself a new change of clothes. Currently she`s wearing a pair of tight, black jeans paired with a white, mini-sleeved Bring Me the Horizon and t-shirt underneath a red jacket with red and white skate shoes. She took the jacket off and tied it loosely around her waist.

She`ll certainly trade her jeans for a pair of shorts and her shoes for a pair of beach sandals. She`ll keep her shirt, though; and maybe tie it into a high knot to suit the mood. Maybe she`ll even buy herself a sunhat along to ward away some of the head from her head.

After that the woman figured she`ll get herself some lunch. The woman distinctly remembered there being a weird-smelling pizza joint and a fry place somewhere on the boardwalk. And a donut place not far away. The last time she was here her whole family had a picnic by the beach. Their aunt and uncle set up a tent and her own parents provided them with music. They`d sang, swam and played games, and watched the sunset when it came and the stars in the night. But that was when her mother was still alive, and she lived a good life.

The woman rubbed on her eyes and sighed. She`ll stay at the old place, her great uncle`s house, while she`s here that she and her brother had inherited when the old man died. She certainly got the keys with her. Her brother held the deed to it though, but knowing him, he`s probably lost it somewhere by now.

She`s going to have to look for it while she`s here. It`s an important piece of document to have and take care of. The woman dearly hoped that her brother was in this place, just as her source had told her last they were in contact. He had left her and their father behind a while back to carve himself a new life of freedom and fame.

Her older brother, _Gregory._

The prime reason she was in this dry tourist trap was to find him, and bring him home. Many things depended on her to do this right. For the sake of the family.

For the sake of their futures.

If she could leave her life behind to look for him then he very well could return the gesture and do the same. The woman had done a lot of wrongs in her life, and she was determined to make sure that this will not be one of them. She turned and re-entered her car. The engine roared back to life at the turn of her ignition key.

 _Get ready, Greg. I`m coming to get you whether you want me to or not and I`m not going to let anything stop me._

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 _**Whew! It`s done! I know it`s a bit short, even for a prologue but I`m still working on my writing. Reviews and comments are nice, though hateful ones are not.**_

 _ **I love you guys. Peace out.**_


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

 **Author`s note: Whew, it`s been awhile since I wrote the last chapter and I`m really, really sorry that it took a long time for me to finish this one. I was caught in the middle of something that I just cannot put off and now that it`s done I`m finally free! Thanks for the reviews and favourites and followers- you guys are the best! Enjoy!**

 **Lady Shadow92: It`s not going to be a surprise if I told you what will happen, will it? (winky face winky face) And yes, I am planning to include Lapis and Peridot in this story. They`re adorable!**

 **masterbro 123: Dude, yeah! It`s gonna be epic! Thanks for your support!**

 **JA75: Wow, thanks! And yeah, I guess that`s about it; unless you have a cooler name suggestion for him to call her. I`m up for any changes to make the story better.**

 **Katmar1994 and the lunar queen; thank you! All of you are wonderful, beautiful people. Bless you.**

 **Now, enjoy the story!**

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The woman slipped her shades back on as she stepped out the pizzeria and placed her wallet back into the red and black side bag she had with her. She took out her new, wide-brimmed sunhat along from the bag as well and put it on top of her head. She had a wide, pleased smile on her face from her full stomach.

Her light-tangerine Aston Martin was parked at the mostly empty parking space next to the building, save for the single, pizza-themed delivery car and the woman opted to go for a walk on the boardwalk. She now wore her t-shirt tucked into a pair of high-waist maroon shorts with a pair of brand new red and grey strappy sandals. It was amazing; barely anything changed since the last time she was here!

Everything was going fine so far. She walked over to the Funland Arcade and peered inside and her eyes widened in excitement. There were so many new games! She could hardly see any kids inside, however, and wondered if it was because they were in school or if the town really had a small number of residents. She decided to enter the dimly-lit building and take a look for herself. It almost felt like she was a kid again and the woman laughed aloud in amusement.

"Hello there!"

She turned her head to the source of the cheerful voice and spotted a bald, black man standing behind the ticket counter with an extraordinarily huge smile on his face, wearing a purple collared shirt that had with random shape patterns on it tucked into black pants.

"Hey," the woman greeted and took off her shades.

"I`m Harold Smiley, owner of the Funland Arcade and amusement park. Can I help you? I can provide you with change and tokens for the games, if you want some."

She shook her head. "Nah, I`m just looking around." She replied. "Been a long time since I visited this place. I see lots of changes." Harold Smiley raised a curious eyebrow and leant his body forward. The woman could see that despite his less-than-average height, he had a broad chest.

"Really now?"

"Yeah. Last time I was here, a white guy was in charge of Funland." She paused and gave him a suspicious look. "Wait a minute, Harold Smiley? Correct me if I`m wrong but aren`t you the RnB singer that retired years ago?"

The man had a shocked look on his face, before he beamed proudly towards the woman. "Why yes, yes I am!" He confirmed. "I can`t believe that somebody actually remembered me. I don`t recall being that popular, even back then."

The woman approached him and held out her hand. "No, but I had friends who loved your songs. I`m Sam."

"Well then Sam, nice to be of acquaintance to you. Can I help you with anything? It doesn`t have to do with games. As you could probably imagine, it`s not every day I meet someone who remembers who I used to be. It`s a nice change from the usual daily stuff I do." He replied and shook her hand with his own. Sam shrugged.

"I`m just looking around for today, but thanks."

"Hey, it`s no problem. Consider me a new friend."

Sam nodded. "Nice. Well, I`m off to see more stuff around here before the sun sets. Guess I`ll meet you again later, Mr Smiley." The man waved her off.

"Okay then Sam. Hey, and it`s Harold. Have fun!"

They parted ways and the woman continued her journey down the boardwalk. She made a mental reminder to visit the man and the amusement park later on in the future. The temperature was cooler than it had been when she`d first arrived in town, and the woman decided to just ditch her hat for day and enjoy the wind blowing through her hair. There were a lot more people moving to and fro now that it was not so hot out. A boy with pointy blond hair and a weird shaped head, sort of like an onion, walked past her with a blowtorch and she couldn`t help but to see where he was going to with it.

The boy looked like he was well off, with red pants, a tucked in white shirt and a blue outer shirt tied around his shoulders. Sam sat himself on one of the available benches and her sculptured eyebrows rose when she saw him enter the arcade and hoped that Harold won`t be having too much trouble dealing with him.

Sam thought about going down to the beach when suddenly her attention was caught by an annoying noise pattern going through the air.

" _May-or De-wey, May-or De-wey."_

The sounds came from a weird-looking van, being driven down the boardwalk by a guy in a purple suit. Sam crossed her arms. What in the world was _that_ supposed to be? From where she sat, it kind of looks like an pest-exterminator van, what with the large head sitting on top of it, but judging by that increasingly annoying chant, it`s more likely not.

The buy with brown hair waved as her as he drove past and Sam couldn`t help but to give him an awkward smile-and-wave combo back.

"Remember citizen," he called out passionately. "Re-elect Mayor Dewey for the good of Beach City! That`s me!"

Sam gave him double thumbs up and watched in increasing relief when the van drove into the distance and made a turn around the corner. When it finally disappeared, she sighed. So _that_ was Beach City`s mayor? He… doesn`t look like a very good mayor, but you can never know with the people around here. A gull landed on the boardwalk by her feet and another and Sam smirked. She went to the Fryman fries shop and ordered a set of large fries for herself and the birds. Sam figured she could feed them as well when she walks down to the beach.

Procrastination is a very bad habit to have, considering the very nature of her visit to this town and the severity of her business. Sam knows this, but it couldn`t hurt to just finish this day and start her search tomorrow. Sam took off her sandals the moment her feet touched the sand and stuffed it inside of her bag, not caring whether if it were covered in dirt or other grime.

The wind was blowing through her curtain of wavy brown hair and the soothing sounds of the waves hitting the sand were in her ears. Everything was seemingly perfect. Sam could see other people on the beach as well; a family of foreign tourists was picnicking on the beach and a group of kids were swimming in the sea. A girl was flying her kite. Sam sat herself on a spot not far from the wave line and started enjoying her fries. Once in a while she would break the fries into little bits and pieces and threw them on the sand for the birds to enjoy.

Sam was so caught up in her own peaceful state of mind that she did not notice the young boy walking up behind her with a small hand-painted ukulele in his hand.

"Hello!"

Sam snapped her head back towards the source of the voice and her eyes widened in surprise. _Whoa, talk about déjà vu._ He had a familiar, chubby face and wide, warm smile, and dark eyes that were wide with wonder and curiosity. He bore a wild, curly mane of dark brown hair and skin pink from the sun. He looked so happy and precious that Sam couldn`t help but to feel like she had the duty to treat him just as well. So she gave him a similar smile back and nodded once to acknowledge his presence.

"Hey."

"Why are you throwing away your fries? Are the birds bothering you? Do you want me to help chase them away?"

Sam almost laughed at how cute the boy looked when he was concerned but held it in when she realized that he was actually serious. She shook her head. "Nah," Sam replied. "I just thought that the birds looked kind of hungry. So I gave them some bits of my fries."

The boy nodded, before he shot a glare at the birds. "If you say so." He replied. Sam`s smile widened. What was this boy`s problem with seagulls? She patted the empty spot beside her as invitation for him to sit. Stars appeared in his eyes and he did.

"You seem to hate Seagulls for some reason or another."

The boy shot another glare at the birds eating her fries on the sand and turned his head dramatically to the side, before sighing. Sam shook her head as she finished the last of her bits and set the empty container aside.

"That," he answered her solemnly. "Is a very long story. But I do."

Sam hummed before she decided to avert his attention towards another subject, one that is less touchy with him and her gaze fell atop that ukulele that was in his hand. "Hey," she said, and gestured to the instrument with her eyes. "You play, kid?"

The boy`s face lit up again and he brought the small thing to his chest affectionately. "Yeah! That was what I came here for! Do you have any requests?"

Sam chuckled in amusement. "Why not just sing me _your_ favourite song, kid? I don`t have any specific songs that I like, at the moment. I dig almost anything." The boy nodded and began strumming the strings with his fingers. He was actually really good, which surprised Sam and she found herself listening intently to his voice over the soothing rhythm of the music and the sea.

" _If you`re evil and you`re on the rise,_

 _You can count on the four of us, taking you down_

 _`Cause we`re good and evil never beats us,_

 _We`ll win the fight and then go out for pizzas._

 _We are the Crystal Gems,_

 _We`ll always save the day,_

 _And if you think we can`t_

 _We`ll always find a way._

 _That`s why the people of this world_

 _Believe in-_

 _Garnet,_

 _Amethyst,_

 _And Pearl_

 _And Steven!"_

When the song finally ended, Sam realized she was actually clapping to the beat of the song. She was deeply impressed. "Whoa, kid. That was _nice!_ You`ve got one heck of a talent. What was that song about? Are you Steven?"

The boy smiled and nodded sheepishly. "Thanks," he replied. "And yes, I am Steven. I should have probably introduced myself earlier but I was really caught up with the birds. Sorry."

"It`s no big. I`m Sam; nice to meet you, Steven."

Steven laughed. "It`s nice to see you too. Wow, you`re really polite. Pearl taught me that we should always say that when we meet other people but I usually forget." He looked guilty for a moment before it disappeared.

"It`s okay." Sam quipped, and waved it off. "And is this the same Pearl from that song you sang about?"

"Yeah! Me, Pearl, Garnet and Amethyst are in a group called the Crystal Gems and we work to protect the world and humanity from alien monsters and stuff!"

Sam raised a sculptured, sceptical eyebrow at the boy`s claims. _This kid has one heck of an imagination._ "Really now? Are you guys like superheroes or something?" Steven strummed a couple of notes on his ukulele as he answered the questions.

"I like to think us as superheroes, but technically the gems are a type of extra-terrestrial species that`s over a thousand years old. Before my mom gave up her physical form to create me, they used to fight alongside her but it`s just us now."

 _Yikes. Too much information._ A speck of discomfort and slight concern formed within her when Steven had told her about his mom and she gulped. Is this kid okay? "And… you`re okay with your mom being… gone?" Sam asked carefully.

Steven paused for a moment and Sam wondered if she had unknowingly ventured into some overly sensitive territory. She wasn`t actually sure if this was okay, since Steven was the one that had led them into this particular topic. "Um, Steven? It`s totally okay if you don`t want to answer the question-" She apologized but Steven raised his palm and interrupted her.

"It`s okay," he assured her. "I… don`t know, actually. When I was little the Gems told me that mom was kind and great and she saw beauty in everything. But now, I keep learning new things about her that made me question them, and her. I know that my dad and them, Pearl especially, misses her and I just can`t help but feel… like I shouldn`t exist. Like the whole world was better off if she hadn`t sacrificed herself for me in the first place."

Sam drew in a sharp breath and slowly exhaled to release the tension. "Kid; _Steven_ , don`t you ever think like that." She answered him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Your mother made the decision to bring you into the world and there must be some reason for that, right? _She wanted this_ ; she wanted _you_ because she somehow knew that you would bring greater good to this world than she could have ever done."

"How do you know that?" Steven questioned her, and Sam hugged her knees to her chest. "Kid, a mother`s love is the greatest thing in the world. If she was willing to… be sacrificed in order for you to live then that`s usually the reason. She trusted you to do and be the best that you can be even when she didn`t even laid her eyes on you."

They shared a comfortable moment of silence and stared at the waves, before Steven cleared his throat and gave her a soft, thankful smile. " _Thanks_."

"You`re welcome."

There was another pause. "So Sam, you`re not from around here, are you?"

"Nah," she answered him. "I`m just here on business. Will be for about a month or so." Steven narrowed his eyes playfully at her and strummed another note with his fingers. "What kind of business?" he asked her and Sam laughed and ruffled his hair, which felt surprisingly soft.

"I`m looking for a person."

"Yeah? Who? Maybe I could help you at it while you`re here?" He asked again and wriggled his eyebrows.

"Not today, kid. Maybe tomorrow and yeah, if you really want to then I guess there`s nothing wrong with it."

Steven nodded. "Okay."

"Yeah."

"Do you have a place to stay at for while you`re here?"

Sam looked at Steven slyly and smirked. "I got a place. Aren`t you a bit young to be bringing girls back to your house? What will your dad say?" She gasped comically and placed her hands at her cheeks. "What will your _girlfriend_ say if she finds out?"

Steven blushed a deep shade of red and darted his gaze away. "I don`t have a girlfriend."

" _Ooh_ ," Sam gushed. "Why not? Is there someone special you have in mind?" Steven`s blush increased and Sam couldn`t help but to burst into laughter.

"Relax, kid- I`m just messing with you."

Sam sighed as the sun begun setting down and pushed herself up to her feet. Steven mirrored her actions and the both of them brushed away the sand from their pants.

"So, new friend, I`ll see you again later?"

Sam looked at him fondly and nodded. "Yeah kid. Goodnight. And maybe say hi to the gems for me, yeah?"

Steven smile grew and he nodded his head.

"I`ll do that."

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 **Ever had this experience when you just blurt all your problems out to a stranger for no reason? Yeah, this was what I was trying to get Steven to do. I wanted him to come to the beach for some alone time with his ukulele but found Sam instead. I wanted to make Greg look kind of similar to Steven when they were about the same age, which explains why Sam experienced a sense of déjà vu when she meet our precious little cinnamon bun; which led to the unofficial bonding moment between the two. Aw.**

 **Reviews are nice. Please and thank you.**


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

 **Author`s note: Hello again, dear readers! OH MY GOD, how about that 'Last one out of Beach City' episode, huh?! It was freakin` crazy! By the end of it I was literally dancing and jumping in my room. Oh my God oh my God oh my God- all that Bad! Pearl AU going on, and that mysterious 'S' woman, and I was like she`s looking so much like the artworks I`ve seen with that symbol on the back of her jacket and high-waist jeans. Like,** _ **no. Way.**_ **GAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!**

 **This is officially my third most favourite episode for the series after Rose`s Scabbard and Mr Greg. Great God give me strength.**

 **(*Closes eyes**Takes in deep breaths*) Okay, I`m calm. I am calm. I am done. Done with it. Done. Huh. (*Tee hee hee*) Now let's get back to the story. (*TEE HEE HEE*)**

 **So. Heads up- Sam is three years younger than Greg. When Greg first met with Rose, he was about 22 years old. I imagine Greg and Rose dated for about at least a year before she finally decided to have Steven. Currently, Steven is 14 years old which makes Greg 37. And so that makes Sam 34 years old.**

 **This chapter gives a little bit more detail as to why Sam was in Beach City and we explore more in hers and Greg`s family history. It`s more to a filler chapter if not anything, but I`ll try my best to make it interesting.**

 **Thanks for all the reviews, followers and favourites. You people are too kind.**

 **P.S: I can`t stop smiling. Help.**

 **On with the story!**

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The sky had already begun to darken the moment Sam finally reached the old house and parked her car by the building`s double front doors. The mansion, to put it in better words, had a large front yard that was littered with leaves and overgrown grass. It had a metal fence, now rusted, circling around the entire property and a matching, intricately designed gate to mark the area`s entrance. The mansion was slightly isolated from the other houses in town, perched by its lonesome a little way up on a hill and was surrounded by trees.

She killed the engine and got out, and looked over the front of the building. It didn`t look too bad, for something that`s supposedly uninhabited by anyone for more than a decade. Sure, the exterior could use another fresh paint job and there were plants crawling up the sidewalls but Sam would give it a six out a ten rating for a sort-of first impression. She got her stuff out of the car`s bonnet- a medium sized overnight bag, her laptop set bag, and three, smaller side-bags for her shoes, toiletries and makeup and light food, just in case.

She unlocked the door and entered, and was pleased to discover the lights still working. Most of the furniture was understandably covered with white cloth to avoid collecting dust. Sam made her way to the first floor and chose one of the five rooms present, the master bedroom, for herself to stay the night in. She dropped her bags on the floor and sighed. The house was going to need a lot of work; from dusting and mopping the floors and wiping the cabinets and God knows what else.

Sam figured she could just hire someone to mow and clean the lawn and front yard and do the interior cleaning, while she goes and find Greg. Money was no issue, and she won`t even have to do much for the sake of comfort. Then she could hire a technician to check the house circuits. She`s going to have to check the bathrooms` water flow by herself first, though, before she could call in a plumber.

Her stomach growled and Sam groaned softly in frustration and laziness before getting off of the bed and scoured her belongings for a packet of instant noodles. She was in no mood for take-outs or delivery and this was the best that she can think of to eat for the night. She made a mental note to go for grocery later on in the week and promptly made her way to the kitchen.

The house of two main floors- the upper floors consisted of five bedrooms, three with their own private bathrooms and a single detached bathroom for the other two, while on the lower floor was the kitchen, the living room, the dining room, a small office space-slash-library space, two smaller bathrooms and another small bedroom intended for the help. The interior walls were painted a soft, peach colour with white ceilings and white marble floors. Some walls held family portraits and famous paintings by various artists. Sam`s pace was slow as she made her way to the kitchen area because she was taking her time observing them and she paused as reaching her own family portrait.

The man in the picture was tall and had brown hair, with brown eyes and he was wearing an expensive-looking suit with a green tie. In front of him sat a brown-haired woman wearing an emerald-green dress whose expression held a large, kind smile and she had dark, grey eyes that were alight with warmth. To her right stood a boy with a stocky stature and short, brown hair that was combed back, wearing a similar suit to that of the man`s and the last was a little girl, standing on the woman`s left side with wavy, brown hair that was set in a green hairband and wearing a pastel white dress with a green ribbon around her waist with black shoes and white frilly ankle socks.

Her father and mother, Nathaniel and Karmin, and Greg and herself; back when she was seven years old and her mother was still alive and they were happy. Sam felt herself tear up and decided to proceed to the kitchen before her waterworks could start and she was too emotionally drained to do anything else. She kept her head empty as she searched for a pot and cleaned it with water from the sink before filling it up and started the stove.

As she waited for the water to boil, it was then only Sam allowed herself to be pulled into her memories of her childhood. Her mother had suffered from cancer and by the time they had it detected, it was too late. She died when Sam was still in her early teen years and all of them were devastated. Karmin was the one that had kept their family together through the rough patches of life and her death took a heavy toll onto everyone.

She was the ultimate love of her father`s life and was about the only one that could make him take his head out of his ass, metaphorically speaking, and get him to relax. Sam and her father shared a strained relationship that grew worse after her mother died. It grew even worse than _that_ when her brother ran away and abandoned her.

Her father, Nathaniel, was a constantly strict, serious man who bore the brunt of carrying and protecting the family name that he paid little attention towards his children. He was all work and no play and it took no genius to figure out why both his children were closer to his wife than himself. Sam sighed, and she dropped her noodles into the pot and began stirring it along as it cooked.

Since the past few years, Nathaniel had been facing heart problems that grew worse the more time he put off in getting it checked on. And it was hard getting him to do it too; he and Sam had had arguments over the matter because of certain issues of him not admitting to the fault and denying everything. Currently, the old man was bedridden back in Sam`s hometown because of his ailment and his time was nearly up.

 _And_ he wanted to see her brother again, for the very last time.

Sam doesn`t know what to feel about the whole thing.

You see, Sam`s existence in her family was not intended and it was because of her mother that they even kept her around at all. Gregory was supposed to be the sole heir of her family; the one to bear the brunt of the family name and all that came with it- the wealth and reputation. Her family carried old money, the one that they came from their forefathers and could last entire generations. Sam didn`t understand where that came from- she never actually received the full version of the tale from anyone, ever.

Sam turned the stove off and poured the noodles into a bowl that she had found and cleaned, and mixed in its spices. Then she grabbed for a spoon and fork, and deposited the pot into the sink for later cleaning. She exited the kitchen and made her way back to the bedroom.

She closed the door and sat herself onto the floor before began enjoying her meal.

A month after her mother died, her father had shipped her off to boarding school. Greg continued and graduated high school and later continued his studies at the local community college, much to their father`s chagrin, who held him in high hopes to at least continue his studies at a reputable educational establishment. It was because of that Sam and her brother rarely saw each other; for she was only home during the holidays. However, they were close and often kept in touch via letters and phone calls.

Granted, Nathaniel treated her son better than he did his daughter. Sam had been jealous of their father`s affection towards her brother and had tried getting his attention. Nothing worked. She`d tried out for sports, kept her grades up and even ran her name in for prefect in school. Her father remained indifferent and sooner rather than later, she simply gave up. Greg on the other hand was praised for every little thing. Sam loved her brother, she really did; but she was human after all and was prone to jealousy as well as other human emotions. A tiny part of her wished Greg was gone so that she could have her father`s attention all to herself.

Gregory, despite knowing how she felt about him, stood beside her all the way. He was caring and attentive; he would offer her hugs when he felt that she needed it and listened to her when she needed to get things off her shoulder. He was like their mother. Karmin and Greg even shared similar talents- they were good with instruments and singing and were wise souls; which made it more often than not that Sam wished that she was the only child. Then she would be as great as he was.

Sam`s father often tried to get Greg to forget about music, and Sam knew that it would never, in a million years, work. Music was Greg`s life, it was an obsession, it was the only healthy way that he could think of for him to let off pressure after their mother died. It was how he kept himself together and sane.

Sam had been young and admittedly stupid; and she`d missed it that Greg faced his own problems as well. She hadn`t the best life in the world but at least she had somebody that was there that could watch her back.

She came back from school one day during a particularly long holiday period only to learn from their father that Greg had ran away. Sam got angry; she couldn`t see or think of any reason why her older brother had done so. She`d called him a lot of names back then; she thought that he was selfish and ungrateful. And for a couple of years Sam wanted very much to forget her brother, but eventually learned that she couldn`t really.

She got her wish; her father paid more attention to her after Greg was gone. She didn`t even get the chance to enjoy her small victory- his bitterness grew over Greg`s disappearance and he kept her on a tight leash. He monitored her every move, controlled her decisions and the people she surrounded herself with. At first Sam was quite willing and did everything that her father told her to without any question to please him. She had wanted him to forget Greg. But he didn`t, and reminded her regularly that she wasn`t enough, that she`ll never be him.

That she was a mistake.

And there was nothing that she could do to make up for it.

Sam was trapped, and there was no way out. She couldn`t just bail like Greg did. She had responsibilities and truth be told, she didn`t want her family to die out either. She hated the old man, sure; but he was still her father. Sam was sure that her dead mother wouldn`t want her to abandon him like her brother did.

So she stayed, and she learned to survive. But now he`s dying. And he wanted to see Greg again.

It`s not fair.

Sam hadn`t actually wanted to do this, but there was no choice. And it hurt like hell. After all those years Sam had learned to cope with her father and the miserable reality that was her life. She didn`t want to go back down memory lane, or find back what`d caused her pain in the first place.

She didn`t ask for this.

She`d only wanted her father`s love. And acceptance.

Sam finished her meal and set the bowl aside. She leaned back and closed her eyes over the myriad of emotions that came with her thoughts. It was overwhelming but she can take it. It was nothing compared to what she`d experienced while living with her father.

Sam cleared her throat and drew in a deep breath to calm down. She pushed herself to her feet and decided to shower. Her dirty dishes would have to wait until later.

Her temporary lodging had been the mansion`s main bedroom at one point, when her aunt and uncle had been alive. It was larger than the other rooms, and had sliding doors that led to a balcony that gave a gorgeous view of the front yard. The walls were a light-chocolate colour with white edges and the ceiling was white as well. The room`s antique-styled furniture were made of quality dark mahogany that included a king-sized, four poster canopy bed, a huge matching wardrobe and an intricately carved vanity table. A plush, white carpet covered the peach-coloured marble floors, and at the bedsides were a matching set of night-stands with similar lamps sitting on each. The bedcover and blankets were white, whilst its four pillows were covered with peach-coloured fabric that complemented the set.

Sam put away what little there was of her belongings- a bag of clothes, her phone and laptop sets, toiletries and make-up set that consisted of a lip-balm and lip-stick, a concealer, an eye-liner, some grey and purple eye-shadow, mascara, moisturizer and toner, sunblock, a comb and a shaver. Sam had several choices of footwear that she stashed by the wall in a pile, with the new addition of her beach sandals.

The room had its own private bathroom with a huge marble bathtub and a shower stall, a sink and toilet. After the shower Sam dressed herself in an oversized blue and white football jersey and a pair of blue cotton pyjama shorts. She tied her hair up in a loose knot and made her way back downstairs barefoot to do the dishes.

Then she locked the front door and made her way back to her room. Sam decided to treat herself to an early night`s rest. It was going to be an eventful day as of tomorrow and she was going to need all the energy and mental preparations that she could get.

* * *

 **And that`s it- another chapter done! Greg and Sam`s background in the bag and one of Sam`s earliest mistakes to go. There will be more of that in later chapters as we progress deeper into the story.**

 **Review!**


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

 **Author`s note: This is it; this is where it all begins. Three words: Sam. Meets. Greg.**

 **I would like to thank all the wonderful people who have reviewed, followed and favourite the story for your support. God bless you. And moreover, I would like to apologize for the break and if it had frustrated and annoyed any of you. Not going to give you any excuses because it`s never going to add up to the attention and time you people have given me by reading the fic.**

 **Now enjoy!**

* * *

To wake up early and be in the midst of dead silence and calmness of Mother Nature is truly a rewarding and exhilarating experience. Sam wiped off a bead of sweat from her brows with the towel she had around her neck with a satisfied smile. It was a fine, cool morning and she had just finished jogging around the areas in Beach City. It was a great start to a beautiful new day and Sam was just about to get her breakfast.

Jogging was a ritual Sam had kept up since she was sixteen years old to ease up on the stresses of daily life and keep herself fit at the same time. And so far, it`d done nothing but worked wonders on her body and stamina. Earlier, Sam had chosen to leave her car at the mansion and decided to explore the areas around Beach City while she jogged. And just with her luck, she had even met another regular jogger; the blond boy that served the counter at the fry place she visited yesterday, and learned that his name was Pee Dee.

Another day, another new friend: Pee Dee was friendly, a habit he explained that had come from interacting with customers all day as he worked in his father`s shop. He was a good conversationalist to have a discussion with. He said that usually there would be another fellow jogger- one of the girls working at the pizzeria, Kiki. But today it was just them. Pee Dee was the youngest son of the Fryman family and with his older brother, Ronaldo, not actually interested in the family business; he was probably next in line to inherit it as well. He was 12 years old, going on 13. Pee Dee had offered to become Sam`s official jogging tour guide and with no better deal on her side, Sam had gladly accepted.

He`d shown her around his usual route, and explained some of the others that were available to her that were longer and had better views. Sam had laughed and mussed up his hair; in to which Pee Dee had groaned crossly in return. Pee Dee then invited Sam over to the Big Donut, which was his breakfast stop every time he was done with jogging.

"Hey Pee Dee, you know what? What about I treat you for today?" Sam asked as she pushed open the door to the establishment and they entered into the air-conditioned room. Pee Dee shot her an odd, pleased smile and rubbed at the back of his neck. "R-really? Wow, gee, y-yeah. Okay, if it`s not troubling you, then yeah, sure."

Sam chuckled and the both of them made their way to the counter. There, a short, teenage girl with blonde hair awaited them with an easy, calm smile. "Welcome to the Big Donut. How may I help you? And Pee Dee, good morning. You want two of the usual?"

"Morning, Sadie." Pee Dee greeted and glanced up at Sam. "Nah, I think I`m up for something else today. Oh, and this is Sam. Sam; Sadie."

Sam held out her hand. "Nice to meet you, Sadie."

"You too. So, what can I get for you guys today?" Sadie replied as she shook the hand with her own. Sam was slightly surprised by how strong the girl`s grip was. Pee Dee ran his half-lidded gaze over the menu.

"Hm, get me that two-in-one flavour special donut with sprinkles. What do you want, Sam?"

Sam squinted her eyes in focus towards the menu, before she shrugged. "Meh, I`ll have two of your glazed donuts and a cup of fresh Joe."

Sadie gave them their order and Sam got out some money from a small pouch-belt she wore around her waist. "You can get some coffee over there." Sadie said and pointed them to a couple of water containers marked 'coffee' and 'tea'. Sam said her thanks and took her drink, before she and Pee Dee headed for the tables outside to enjoy their breakfast.

They sat themselves across each other and started their breakfast in silence; with Pee Dee enjoying the blow of the morning wind on his skin and Sam pulled out her phone from the pouch and inspected her social accounts. She had several new likes in InstaPics for some pictures she`d taken of Beach City and a comment from her best friend that made her wonder the last time they`d met each other. Jasmine was her best friend; they`d studied in the same class together back in school; they were in a band together, once, with her acting as lead guitarist and singer and Jasmine played the keyboard.

Now Jasmine`s working in taking care of her own family business, and she`s _way_ halfway around the world. Sam could remember clearly how they used to joke around and cause trouble, and how she used to cry on the other girl`s shoulder in the middle of the night over how much worse her father had treated her during their most recent meetings.

Oh how much had Sam`s life changed since then.

Sam scrolled the page lower and paused as she spotted a beautiful picture of a darling little girl, looking about five years old, with a mane of wavy blonde hair and rosy cheeks and the cutest little smile, dressed up in a pastel-white and cream coloured dress. The girl`s wide, grey eyes were wide and alight with delight as she looked on towards the photographer in front of her. She was standing barefoot in what seems to be a garden, with a bouquet of mixed flowers in her hand.

Sam sighed and traced her thumb over the picture affectionately, and was momentarily lost in her own world while taking bites into her donut breakfast.

"Hey Sam?"

Sam snapped out of her reverie and turned her attention to the blond boy, who was holding onto a bottle of mineral water from nowhere.

"You okay there? Seems like you`re quite a bit into your head for a moment there. You didn`t even notice when I got up to buy a bottle of water from the shop." Pee Dee inquired with a look of concern and a small feeling of guilt appeared in Sam`s chest. That, and slight embarrassment because of her ignorance over the young boy`s actions.

"I`m okay," Sam assured him with a small smile. "Hey Pee Dee?"

"Yeah?"

"I… you`re a local, right?"

Pee Dee looked at her curiously. "Yeah, you know that."

"I was wondering… look, um, do you know all the people living in Beach City?" Sam asked and Pee Dee raised an eyebrow over her question. "I like to think that I do." He answered her. "What`s this about, Sam? Are you looking for someone?"

Sam hesitated for a moment before she steeled herself and decided to just go for it. This was her chance. "Yeah," she nodded. "It`s definitely a someone alright."

Pee Dee scrunched his forehead and looked at her with concern. "You`re not… going to hurt them, are you?" he questioned her. "I mean, it`s a totally ridiculous question… a-and I get that we`ve only just met this morning and everything but I just wanna make sure-"

Sam couldn`t help the chuckle that escaped her lips over the boy`s concern. "No, kid. Let`s just say he and I… we`ve got a whole lot of things unsettled between us."

Pee Dee seemed to consider this for a moment before he gulped and sighed. "Okay then; let`s hear it. Who are you looking for?"

"I`m looking for a man- Gregory Universe?"

Pee Dee`s forehead scrunched up in surprise and there was a curious glint in his eyes now. "Gregory, as in Greg Universe? Like, long brown hair, farmer`s tan and uh, fat?"

Long brown hair she gets, but farmer`s tan? Greg was kind of stocky back then, but his body was always like that. He got that from their mother, just like everything else. She, on the other hand was more of their father than she, herself, would willingly admit. Somewhat tall for her size, and demeanour, which Sam likes to think, she inherits from spending her whole life trying to shape up into his expectations.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Uh yeah," Pee Dee replied sheepishly. "That`s the only Greg Universe living in Beach City that I`m aware of. He works at the local carwash."

Sam crossed her arms in disbelief. "The… carwash. Really?"

"Uh, yeah."

There was a tense moment of silence between them as Sam contemplated her next move. "And do you know where he lives? His house?"

Pee Dee looked a bit embarrassed, like he was feeling a bit uncomfortable in revealing other people`s details to a practical stranger. "Uh… I think he lives at the carwash? In his van."

Sam couldn`t believe her ears. She could feel a headache coming along. Greg, _her older brother Greg_ , works in a _carwash_ and lives in a _van?_ Where did that come from?

"Let me get this straight; Greg Universe… lives in a van?"

Pee Dee pulled at the collar of his sleeveless shirt. "Yeah. Look Sam, I`m really sorry but I`m feeling a bit… uncomfortable about this. I feel like some people`s information are… private? And it`s really not my place to tell."

Sam was about to protest, she was about to say that knowing her older brother, he wouldn`t really mind if someone blurted out his greatest secret right out in front of a random stranger; hell, he`d not even enough decency that he would probably wash himself in the ocean! But Sam took in a deep breath and steadied herself. Pee Dee was a good kid; considerate, sensitive, kind; and Sam would hate to ruin it for him by taking her anger out on somebody innocent.

"…Okay, Pee Dee. I understand. Really, I`m sorry for making you feel uncomfortable in the first place."

Pee Dee wore a look of guilt but accepted her apology with a wave of his hand. Things were easing out for the moment, the atmosphere lightened and Sam sighed before she took in a sip of her coffee. Then Pee Dee cleared his throat.

"Um, Sam? I have a question, uh, that is, if you don`t mind me asking."

Sam closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath. "You want to ask me how I know Greg Universe."

Pee Dee`s eyes widened and his cheeks darkened. "Y-yeah."

"Well, Pee Dee. I`m gonna tell you something you have to keep from everyone else until I say so, got it?"

Pee Dee`s eyes widen and he waved his hands nervously. "W-wait, Sam! It`s okay if-if you wanna keep it private! You don`t have to tell me!"

Sam took another sip of her coffee and raised her palm to signal that it was alright. "Nah," she replied. "It`s okay. You earned it, I think. You helped me find him and that deserves a little reward."

An awkward pause settled in the conversation, with Sam looking at Pee Dee with narrowed eyes and the other looking everywhere but towards Sam, which eventually led to the older woman cracking up. Pee Dee looked shocked. "Loosen up, kid! It`s not that serious, really! He`s my brother."

Pee Dee was just about to comment about how it was fine again but froze when those words came out of Sam`s mouth _. "B-brother?!"_

"Chill, kid. I told you how I don`t want anyone knowing yet."

Pee Dee had a held a hand to his chest. "H-how-"

Sam laughed. "Dude," she chirped and gestured her hand down her body. "Can`t you see the resemblance?"

Pee Dee frowned as he eyed the woman from head to toe. There was a little bit of resemblance in their body structure, but she must be, like, as tall as Greg is! Greg`s hair was a lighter shade than the woman`s but they do share a hint of similarity in the way they smile? Pee Dee shrugged. "Kind… of?"

Sam shook her head in amusement. "Whatever kid. But thanks for your help."

"You`re welcome."

They shared another pause, this one of comfortable silence before Pee Dee cleared his throat again. Sam shook her head. "No, Pee Dee. What happened between us is a story for another day."

" _What?!_ But-"

Sam shot the younger boy a sly grin. _So cute, so predictable_. She turned her attention to her coffee, all mysterious-like and took another sip.

"Trust me, champ. I know these things."

…

Sam turned her attention from the screen of her phone back to the man standing in front of her, dressed in faded-blue, jean overalls and an old worn-out cap. "So… I just go straight up this road and turn right around the corner, then left?"

"Yeah," he answered her. "Sounds about right."

Sam nodded and thanked him, before rolling her driver`s seat window back up. Sam placed her phone back on its stand on the dashboard and went back on her way. After meeting Pee Dee and seeing him go, Sam had went back inside the Big Donut and asked the Sadie for numbers for the plumber and electrician for the mansion. Sadie was a nice kid- she named a few people whom she thinks could be of help to Sam, and the older woman ended up with three numbers of electricians and five of different plumbers in the neighbourhood. Sadie gave her number for housekeeping service as well, one that she herself trusted, and it earned her Sam`s respect and instant friendship.

Sam had went back and made an appointment with the plumber and electrician and cleaned herself up whilst waiting for her arrival. After meeting them and explaining the house`s situation, Sam called the housekeeping service company and made an appointment for that one as well. She went along to the store and bought groceries as the workers she hired patched up the house- food, cleaning liquids, detergent- and returned back to the house to put away the groceries and monitor the men`s progress.

Then the cleaning service arrived and she paid them off to an instant thorough cleaning of the house from top-to-bottom and re-did her research about Greg, a.k.a. Mr Universe to ready herself for their meeting.

It took about more-or-less roughly about four hours for everything to be done and to say that Sam was deeply satisfied with their service was an understatement. All the circuits and water cycles were going as smooth as marbles and the house gleamed from dusting and mopping and sweeping everything. The fact that the house wasn`t actually in bad condition in the first place helped but it impressed Sam just the same that everything was done in a shorter time than she`d expected.

When the time was a couple of hours after noon, Sam started her car for the search for her brother. Dressed in a pair of cream-coloured pants, a black and white striped t-shirt and a pair of black, and beige running shoes, she turned on the ignition and went about her way. Initially, Sam wanted to locate her brother using her phone`s GPS system, by keying in the Beach City Carwash onto her search box but eventually resulted to asking the locals when identifying which road was which became a problem.

Sam followed the man`s instructions and to her slight surprise, she found the carwash easier than she`d expected. Sam parked her car at the side of the road and killed the engine. This was it. The moment she`d been waiting for since she arrived in Beach City. She rolled down the driver`s seat window and peered out. The establishment was empty and seemed dead; Sam figured that the business must be slow when it`s not during the holidays. A van was parked at the side of the building that was white and had colourful, abstract designs on its frame.

Was Pee Dee telling her the truth earlier? Seems like it so far, though Sam still couldn`t quite accept the information about her brother living in a van. Even the very idea of it sounds ridiculous! However disturbing that revelation may be, it was not important. All she needed to do now was get out of her car and meet Greg.

She cracked her knuckles and her neck muscles and unbuckled her belt, before popping her car door open. Coincidentally, a fat man exited the car wash whistling to a tune, and Sam`s eyebrows narrowed to a crest between her eyebrows in a mix of shock and disbelief and her mouth fell open. _It… it`s really him,_ Sam`s heart whispered.

 _It`s Greg._

Pee Dee was telling her the truth. Her brother _was_ fat and had a huge bald spot at the top of his head with long, unkempt brown hair was sun-bleached to a much lighter colour than it was originally and he had a _beard_. He wore a white tank top and a pair of short, grey, ripped pants that showed his farmer`s tan with a pair of light blue sandals.

Sam`s mind was blown and she couldn`t get even a single thought straight. She watched silently as Greg got the turned on the hose and began spraying water onto the white van. She swallowed a lump that appeared in her throat. He looked _poor_ but happy.

It took a moment for Sam to finally get back to her senses but when she did Sam sighed and ran her hand down the back of her head. She didn`t know whether to be nervous, for finally meeting someone she hasn`t set her eyes on for a very long time; or laugh, for this… _hilarious_ situation she had found herself and Greg in.

Finally, she made up her mind to just go with it and walked to the front of the wash. Greg hadn`t notice her and a plan formed in Sam`s head to surprise her older brother.

Sam walked up to him, yet keeping a safe distance between them so that she wouldn`t get wet from the hose for if he might drop it in shock, and cleared her throat.

"So, _Greg_ Universe," Sam called. " _This_ isthe life of freedom and popularity you always talked about?"

A tensed pause settled between them as Greg froze before he turned around to face her. Dark grey eyes met black and she gave him a playful smile that he hadn`t seen in _years._ Greg Universe dropped the hose he was holding onto the road and his face had disbelief written down all over it.

" _S-Sam?!"_

The woman chuckled and nodded.

" _Don`t wear it out, brother-man."_

* * *

 **That last part was really fun to write! I couldn`t actually imagine being in Sam`s place and seeing such huge differences in Greg from last she saw him, but I try to make do. I`ve introduced a couple of new minor characters in the story and one of them will play a huge role in determining the course of Sam`s decisions and actions. Can you guess which one?**

 **Reviews; please and thank you!**


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

 **Author's note: Welcome back, everyone! It's been awhile since I posted the last chapter and I guess the time is due for yet another. I would like to thank all the reviewers and people who have followed and favourite the story;** _ **hell, yeah!**_ **And I've decided to make this story start after the premiering of 'Mr Greg'; so Greg in this story is kinda loaded and before the episode 'Beach City Drift'.**

 **StevenSquid: I'm planning this chapter and maybe the next one for Greg and Sam to get re-acquainted. Maybe I'll insert some scenes about Steven telling the Gems about Sam? I don't know. You'll have to read to find out. Yeah, I'm excited for some Steven and Gems action with Sam too. d(o)b**

 **Leonard Church814: Thank you so much for correcting my mistake. I really, really appreciate it.**

 **Guest1234: You'll have to keep reading to find out! ;)**

 **Disclaimer: Steven Universe belongs to the marvellous Rebecca Sugar and her Crewniverse! None of it is mine, sadly; except for Sam.**

 **Now enjoy!**

* * *

" _S-Sam?!"_

 _The woman chuckled and nodded._

" _Don't wear it out, brother-man."_

Greg's eyes were as wide as saucers and he was at a loss for words. Sam's grin enlarged and she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Hello again, _Gregory_." Sam greeted and laughed again, which made Greg stumble backwards in disbelief, tripped over the hose and fell on his bottom. " _Oh my God_ ," he whispered again and again with a hand over his heart. Sam was a bit surprised at his reaction- was he really that shocked to see her again, after all these years?

"Whoa, dude. Are you okay? Uh, d-do you need help getting up?"

" _Oh my God_ ," Greg repeated as he sat up and pinched on his arm, before slightly wincing from the pain afterwards. Sam sighed and went over to help him up. " _Greg!_ Snap out of it, man. You're embarrassing me _. Damn, Greg_."

" _It's really you."_

"Well, no duh." Sam rolled her eyes. "Look, you might wanna turn the water off before you forget about it."

" _Wha_ \- Oh! Oh, yeah! Hold on." Greg replied and ran over to the tap at the side of the carwash to turn the water off. Sam watched with a frown over how he was slightly panting, despite the short distance between her and the tap and sighed. Judging from Greg's reaction to meeting her, it was clear that he had thought that they would never meet each other again. Then that would put a slight dent in her plans. But it was nothing she couldn't handle.

"All done?" She asked as he finally got back to her and Greg rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Yeah. Thanks for reminding me."

"No big. You were always forgetful back then, too." Sam replied and paused. "Remember that time you took me to the theatre with your friends and accidentally left me at the gas station on the way back?"

Greg blushed and laughed. Sam's smile returned. Step one, easing herself into the conversation and lighten up the mood, _check_. "Yeah; and it wasn't until dinner when mom asked me where you were that I finally remembered! Man, she got so angry that she`d grounded me for three whole months!"

Sam laughed too, and she purposely hooked a hand onto Greg's shoulder to see how he would react to her touching him. It seemed okay because he didn't pull back and she sneaked in another breath of relief. "Man," Sam said. "Talk about memories, huh?"

"Heh, yeah," Greg answered with an easy smile. "Wow, Sam. I… you're actually here; and-" He eyed her from top to bottom in disbelief. "You're huge."

"Hey, speak for yourself," Sam interrupted him. "At least I don't look like I'm five months pregnant with twins."

"Wow; _rude_."

" _I'm your sister, Greg_. If anyone has the right to insult you and get away with it, it's me." Sam replied and Greg shook his head with amusement. " _No_ , Sam. I mean, I never thought I'd see you all grown up like this. Look at you! When did you get so tall?"

Awkward laughter followed her brother's question- How exactly can she say, without hurting her brother's feelings, that he could have seen her grow to this height only if he hadn't ran away in the first place?

"Uh, I don't know," Sam answered with a strained smile and swallowed the lump in her throat. "It just happened, I guess. I… have never actually taken the time to think about it, you know?"

Greg crossed his arms and nodded. "Yeah."

There was a pause in the conversation as each pondered on what to say next, and Sam decided to broach the subject of his van, with hopes that what Pee Dee had told her wasn't true. "So, uh Greg, where`s your house at?"

Greg's expression turned to one of unease and he bit onto his lower lip. "I… uh, I don't exactly have a house." He admitted. "I live in my van."

Sam frowned, still in denial about the fact even though she'd known about it from Pee Dee earlier, before she coughed out a laugh and hit her brother on his arm. "Real funny, Gregory. Good to know that you still have your sense of humour. _But really_ , where do you live?"

Greg looked conflicted, and Sam rubbed a clasped a hand over her face and sighed. "You`re right serious about this, aren't you?"

"… Yeah, Sam. Sorry."

Sam turned around and placed a hand on her hips. She crouched and narrowed her brows _. I…I_ _could still use this,_ Sam thought. Still, it was hard seeing her brother like this; without proper shelter and barely holding onto his life.

"Dude," She stood up and shook her head. " _Dude_."

"Sam, I-"

" _No, Greg,"_ She interrupted him. "No. I _don't want to believe_ that my brother; _my great, big brother Greg_ , who used to say things about living the easy life in a huge-ass mansion and party shit, _lives in a van."_

Greg blew a heavy sigh and looked away. "Sam, I can't lie and tell you that it's not as hard as it looks like but it's the truth. And by the way, I'm happy with how I am."

Sam wanted to protest, oh did she really want to protest and just shake that stupid crap out of him but held herself back. She must find a solution to this, even though she knew that they'd leave this place eventually and return back home, there was in no way Greg would still live in a run-down van. Not while she's here and she knows about this.

"Greg," she said and grabbed onto his hand. " _Greg_ , look. There is in no way I am going to let my brother live in a van, not while I'm still around. W-why not come and live with me, huh? I have the keys to the old mansion, remember? I have no problems with you keeping the van, but come live at the mansion, yeah?"

Greg looked surprised. "Really? You're staying at that old place?"

"Man, anything _must_ be better than living in a van. Please Greg?"

Greg pondered on it for a moment before he shrugged and sighed. "Yeah okay. No harm in it, I suppose. And I can still keep my van and work at the wash. So okay." Sam sighed in relief. That`s one issue done and over with.

She and Greg took their own vehicles and in their way back to the mansion, stopped to bag up some dinner from the Fish Stew Pizza. The journey was quiet and uneventful as they went side by side, each lost in thought and memories of their own. Greg still couldn't believe that Sam was here. It all felt surreal. Never in a million years had he thought that he would ever set his eyes on his younger sister again. Maybe when he was younger Greg had fantasized returning to his family after he was successful so that he could show off to his father that he can actually make it on his own, with his own terms, but that was before he had met Rose and had Steven.

Greg sighed. This was all so fast, so sudden. He doesn't know what to think about it yet. And who knew Sam would grow up to look so much like their mother? Something pulled his heart with that thought and he sniffed. Oh man, that was still a sore subject, even after all these years. How did she find him? Could she have known all this time where he'd been? Why was she here?

 _Was their father keeping tabs on him?_

Greg shuddered. Now that`s a new thought. Was he silently watching over him all this time, waiting for him to fail so that he could lure Greg back to his old life and responsibilities? Greg remembered feeling so overwhelmed over his duties and choking on the responsibilities, his depression after their mother died and Sam facing problems at school and her strained relationship with their father. He hadn't even time for himself. He was so lost with the world around him that for a while, Greg even forgot how to feel happy.

He _does not_ want to return that life again. Not when he's already have so much with him here- a new life, a job, money for his and Steven's survival. He's happy. He's got friends and people who care about him.

Greg stopped at the red light and tied his hair back with a band he kept in his van's front storage drawer. Then he wiped sweat off his palms on his shirt. It dawned on Greg that he was scared. Scared of the past, of his ghosts; of what lies in wait for him back home. But he drew a sharp breath and calmed himself. Living alongside the gems has taught him several things of facing up to your fears and he decided to do this and get it over with.

Greg swears that he'll face up to his ghosts and by Rose, he'll come out alive. He'll win. That he swears. He'll solve whatever conflict that's plaguing his family and fix them.

Sam's sweet, sweet ride sped past him and led him further to the old building from his memories. She honked her horn and flashed him thumbs up and he returned the gesture with his own nod and a smile. They drove through the town and lines and lines of houses and up a hill, until they finally reached it.

There. Greg's eyes were glued to it the whole time; even when Sam had gotten out of her car to unlock the gate and the both of them drove into the yard. Both stopped their engines and Sam was the first to get out of her car and closed the gate. Greg's hands were practically glued to the wheel, as memory after distant memory flashed in his mind like scenes in a movie.

"Greg?"

Sam knocked on the driver's seat window with a concerned expression on her face and Greg gets it. She understands. _Sam understands him._

" _Hey,"_ Sam called out. " _You okay there?"_

Greg lets go of the wheel and drew in a deep, calming breath. He's doing this. He turns to face her and nods. He released himself from the seatbelt and got out of his van. "I'm fine." He answers her. "Thanks."

Sam shot him a small smile and nods once. "Come on. Let's get in before it starts to get dark out."

Side by side, they enter the building together. As soon as Sam flicked the lights on in the living room, Greg was lost again. His wide-eyed gaze wanders around the space to the hallway and the grand stairs and the portraits the lined the walls as he walked deeper into the house.

"Hey Greg; go shower and change into some fresh clothes. There must be some that fit you. I'm staying in the main bedroom. You can pick another for yourself. Fresh towels are in the cabinet and there are some basic toiletries in the bathrooms. I'll be in the kitchen and put this stuff away."

"Hm, thanks Sam."

Sam's gaze lingered on him before she nodded again and disappeared.

Greg started his journey to the upper floor, his mind still occupied with thoughts. He would get his answers during dinner, if Sam's up to it.

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 **And that's it, folks! Was their meeting too fast? Should I do something about it? What do you think?**

 **Review and comment, please and thank you.**


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

 **Author's note: Gad, guys. I get that we all want Steven and the gems to meet up with Sam and discover that she's his aunt. But I need to get some things sorted out first; like Sam and Greg and Greg and whatever family stuff that's awaiting him. But hey, I'll give you guys a shot of Steven telling the gems about Sam, yeah? It made me feel better for holding out their meeting.**

 **Thank you for the favourites and reviews on the fic so far. God bless.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Steven Universe or any of its wonderful characters.**

 **Enjoy the story, peeps** **!**

* * *

"So Sam," Greg asked, while chewing on a slice of pepperoni pizza. "H-how have you been?"

Sam raised an eyebrow as she pondered his question and the best way for her to answer it. They were both seated at the dinner table, in the dining room. Previously, Greg had showered after choosing one of the remaining guest rooms for himself and dressed in an old college t-shirt he'd found in the closet and a pair of blue pyjama pants. Greg's hair was down, as always, but it looked neater; less… _wild_ than when she'd met him at the wash.

Sam was dressed in an oversized plain shirt that revealed her left shoulder and a pair of dark blue leggings. Her hair was free down her back. Her brows narrowed down slightly then, and Sam decided to give it to him straight. They were going to come to this conversation, sooner or later, and Sam preferred it to be over with as soon as Greg was ready for it. She'd been ready for this since the day she came in terms with herself.

"You mean since you ran away while I was at school?"

Greg winced as if he'd been struck but Sam remained calm. "Yeah." He answered her, his voice low and laced with guilt.

"… Greg, I know that we would come to this conversation sooner or later, but I totally get it if you're not ready for it. We've literally just met a couple of hours earlier. I'm cool if you wanna wait for it a little bit, you know; I'm not exactly in a rush." Sam half-lied, and watched in slight guilt about it while Greg paused in consideration.

"Nah." Greg answered after a moment and both set their pizza slices down onto their plates. "I think I'm ready for this."

Sam drew in a heavy breath and ran her hands through her brown hair. "If you're sure then I think it would be better that I start at the beginning."

...

Steven yawned again and rubbed on his eyes before he turned his attention back to the television set across his bed with a rapidly fading interest. His eyes were halfway closed and his usual smile was growing dimmer with each passing moment.

The night was calm and peaceful; if not uneventful and Steven had just finished his dinner with the gems. Currently, he was supposedly in the middle of watching a survival game show that Connie had recommended. She'd told him earlier that back when she had been younger and her parents were less busy with their work, they used to sit together in the house living room and watch the particular show together. It has been the only one that her mother had had allowed her to watch because it was her father's favourite show as well, other than the fact that it was more realistic and practical than the other reality TV shows that had existed at the time.

Steven was wearing his pair of blue pyjamas and was barefoot, as always. Earlier, Garnet had informed them that there were no missions to be done for the rest of the night and had advised them to rest and take it easy for a while. Amethyst had gone out after that; Steven figured she either went to Vidalia's house or the barn to hang out with Peridot and Lapis.

Steven's smile widened as his thought about the small, green gem. Peridot had developed so much from the old, cruel being they first met back at the Galaxy Warp Pad. She was friendlier, more understanding and she had taken great lengths since the Cluster to fit in with their little group. She'd even made Lapis actually tolerate the Crystal Gems, after years and years of imprisonment and deep hatred. She'd helped Lapis find purpose again, and acceptance, and together they' learned and grew to love the Earth.

The other day, he and Amethyst had taken Peridot to the Beach City Funland and had discovered, with much excitement, that the little green Gem have metal powers. It was a shame that Peridot could not shape-shift, but her new ability had totally made up for it! Pearl had said it was probably because she was an Era 2 gem, which made all the difference. But that also mean that there's chances of them discovering other new things from Peridot. Peridot was still sensitive that she was different from the rest of the gems, but things are looking up.

Speaking of the pale gem, currently Pearl was in her room in the temple, doing who-knows-what. Steven has been so proud for the progressive relationship between her and his dad, Greg. Since the gig in Empire City, things between them couldn't be better- no more awkward tension in the air whenever they talk about his mother and Pearl was more trusting of Greg now that they finally got that overdue talk out of the way.

Pearl had even started treating Greg better now that she had properly accepted that Rose's death wasn't his fault. They could even have actual, decent conversations together without any unwanted hostility and could work together without any hitches in the road. Steven could not feel any more proud and happier for the both of them.

There was still a bit of guilt left, however, over knowing the true relationship between Pearl and his mother. Before Greg, Rose had been everything to Pearl. Even after she'd met him, Rose was still Pearl's whole world; and when after she'd passed and Steven took her place, Pearl still loved her son with all the love that she could muster from her gem. Greg was happy with his life- he's felt what it's like to live with freedom, with no expectations and complete and utter happiness and love with Rose.

 _Pearl_ , on the other hand; Steven sighed.

She's only started living her own life and thinking for herself. Pearl is still adjusting to life without Rose and even though she's gone far from where she originally started, she's still got a lot more to go. What's fourteen years when you've lived for whole millennia, anyway? It could not have been easy. Probably when you've pictured your life to go one way and it ends up another. Steven couldn't imagine what he'd even do if he were ever put in Pearl's situation. He'd kill himself the first chance he gets, that's what.

Pearl deserves happiness and love and bliss, and every other positive thing that Steven could think about. She had sacrificed so much for his and the Crystal Gems' sake, and her strength was amazing. Steven could only hope that he'll be as strong as Pearl when he grows up. True, the pale gem has her imperfections, but doesn't everyone?

Besides Greg, Pearl's also trying to make amends and get along with everyone: Garnet; ever since she'd tricked her into forming Sardonyx. Even though Garnet and Pearl have made up and Garnet said she's forgiven Pearl for it, knowing her mother figure, Steven knows it's still a sensitive topic for Pearl. Next, Amethyst; but their relationship has always been… _explosive,_ for lack of a better word; but at least the both of them are much more mature in dealing with it now. Pearl and Peridot's relationship started out rough, but they were quick to find common ground with each other. Both were thinkers, intellectuals and both found enjoyment in discussing about technology and human

Lapis Lazuli has problems with _everyone_. So Steven's not actually that concerned about her and Pearl. Lapis is another issue all on her own. He's glad that the water gem's getting along with Peridot; she's been needing someone to share everything with.

Steven ran his hand through his dark locks and got up to turn the television off. He's not paying attention to it, anyway. Then Steven went down to get some snacks. He walked over to the fridge and got out some milk and pulled a box of cereals from the cupboard. Beside the box was a bag of unopened chips.

Chips. Potatoes. Pee Dee. Fries.

Fries. Birds.

Birds.

Woman.

Steven's eyes widen in realization. The box of cereal he was holding dropped onto the floor and as if on cue, Pearl's door opened up and she came out of her room with a frown.

"I heard something fell. Steven, are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"OH MY GOD, PEARL! I JUST REMEMBERED SOMETHING!"

"…Oh. Was the mess truly necessary?"

He ran over to her and Pearl bowed to his level. Steven placed his hands on Pearl's cheeks, which surprised the older gem.

"Steven? Is something wrong?" Pearl asked and Steven shook his head. " _Remember the other day I went to the beach with my ukulele because I thought I'd wanted to sing and think about stuff then I saw this woman who was throwing her fries away to the birds and I thought- who throws away fries to the birds so I-"_

"Whoa, Steven." Pearl interrupted him. "Slow down. I cannot understand a word you're saying."

"Pearl," Steven stressed, after he'd taken in a couple of huge breaths and calmed himself down. "I totally forgot about something! But I need Amethyst and Garnet to be here too!"

" _Well_ ," Pearl answered. "I think Amethyst is out meeting with her friend; and Garnet-"

Then the temple door opened again and Garnet came out, adjusting her shades. "I heard someone say my name."

Pearl sighed. "There she is." Garnet walked over to them and placed her hands on her hips. "Is something wrong, Steven?"

Steven, with his eyes still wide, nodded. "Yeah! But I totally need the three of you together to tell you this!" Garnet tilted her head slightly to meet Pearl's gaze, and the other shrugged. "Is this about Jasper?" she asked. Steven shook his head.

"Then Steven, I think two out of three isn't all that bad. She's having her weekly meet with her friend Vidalia. We'll tell her about it later, okay?"

Steven's shoulders slumped and he rubbed the back of his head. "Okay, I guess," Then his smile returned and he led them to the seats by the window. "Garnet, Pearl; sit. I remember something that I have to tell you."

Both gems leaned their bodies slightly in a show of anticipation for what Steven was about to say.

"See, the other day I went to the beach to watch the sunset and play my ukulele and think about stuff. Then I saw this lady who was throwing her fries to the birds. So, I thought; _why in the world is she throwing her fries to the seagulls?_ I thought the birds were attacking her and offered to chase them away. Then the woman said that she meant to feed the birds."

"Then she asked about me and that led to me playing her a song on my ukulele. She praised my song and I told them about you guys and mom."

Garnet and Pearl exchanged glances again. "And? What did she say?" Pearl urged him.

"She seemed really amused, but she was really, really kind. She made me feel better, then she told me that she was looking for someone. I offered to help but then she said that it's okay; that I could help her later if, you know, we ever meet again. Then she told me to say hi to you guys."

There was a pause in the conversation. "Steven," Garnet said. "That woman sounds like a very nice person. I am so glad you met her."

"Yes, Steven." Pearl continued with a small smile. "She sounds very polite. It's not common that you get to meet a stranger who is kind enough to extend their regards to us. Even though we've never met them. What was her name, Steven?"

Steven narrowed an eyebrow and put a finger to his chin. "I… think it was Sam?"

"Sam?" Pearl questioned. "You're not sure, Steven?"

"I can't remember it exactly, but something inside told me it was Sam." Steven shrugged. Garnet nodded. "Well, then I hope you meet this Sam again. Maybe she'll even let you help her find whoever it is that she's looking for."

Steven smiled and nodded. "Yeah. So maybe you guys could tell Amethyst that Sam said hi?"

Pearl laughed and ruffled his hair. "Of course, Steven. We'll definitely tell her about your new friend." Garnet nodded. "Yes. You can count on us, Steven. Now go make your snack and then you should go to bed. It's getting late."

"Oh, and don't forget to brush your teeth." Pearl reminded him. Steven nodded happily towards her. "Okay Pearl. I won't."

Pearl smiled affectionately and shook her head as the boy went to pick the cereal box from the floor. Steven was so pure. She has no idea how he kept the cheerful and bubbly demeanour up despite all the things and revelations that he has been through lately. But she hopes that he will never change. He was the representation for all the potential and good things in the world that they fought for.

Pearl knew that if Rose was still here, she'd be more than proud to see her little boy taking life in stride and strength. They may have done things that they were not proud of; but if this is how it would turn out if they did it then Pearl wouldn't mind doing it all over again. She sat herself onto the sofa and crossed her legs in content.

The thought of Rose made her heart clench for a little bit, but she was used to it. The pain is not what it used to be like back before she and Greg had that talk in Empire City. She could feel herself moving on, and knowing Rose, Pearl knew that the Quartz Gem would be proud of her and her accomplishments. Pearl might not have found another person to share her affections with at the moment, but she was at peace by being just with herself.

She set her gaze towards the little boy eating at the counter-top table and sighed. He was worth it.

…

Greg's eyes were wide and he wore an expression of disbelief on his face. "Wait, is this a joke?"

"Greg," Sam sighed. "I know it sounds bad, but-"

"But what, Sam?" Greg interrupted her and slammed his hands onto the kitchen table. Sam sat straighter and crossed her arms. "Sam," Greg started again. "Don't you remember how he used to treat us? He treated you like _shit_ , Sam. He treated me _like an object_."

"Greg-"

"I can't go back to that old life. I'm-I'm _happier_ here. I have people here _who actually see me for who I am._ "

"Greg _, I get it_! Don't you think I know?" Sam shouted in frustration and threw her hands up with gusto. "Ever since you've ran away I've been dealing with this shit every day; I've been dealing with him every. Fucking. Day, Greg! _How do you think that makes me feel?!"_

There was a tensed pause in the conversation as the both of them struggled to calm themselves down. Sam glanced angrily towards her brother before she gave a last sigh and pinched on the bridge of her nose.

"Greg," she began again. "Please, _please understand._ He's only got until the end of the month to live. You'll never see him again after that. Please, Greg. Stop thinking about yourself for a moment, and think about me. Think about our family, Greg."

"… He's not my family. Not anymore."

Sam groaned and ran a hand down her face. _Damn, since when did Greg get so stubborn?!_ Never mind, she's still got one last tactic to reel him in.

"Come on, Greg," she pressed. "Mom would want you to do this. If she were alive, she would've wanted you to give him another chance. Do it for her, Greg. _Please?"_

Greg's eyes widened on the mention of their mother and he quickly darted his gaze away from his sister. His eyebrows narrowed on the thought and he silently groaned. Sam was right. Their mother would've wanted him to be the bigger man about this, and forgive their father. No one said these things would be easy. Greg sighed.

"Fine. I'll do it.

* * *

 **That's it, folks! Thanks again! Reviews would be lovely.**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

 **Author's note: Yezza! Hello and welcome again to another chapter of Kid Sister! I've been getting a lot of reviews to write about the chapter for when Steven and the Crystal Gems finally meet with Sam and here it is! I am so happy and thankful for your patience for reading until this chapter, and I hope that what I write meet each and every one of your expectations. I'll try serving it with a bit of excitement and lots of drama, and I hope you guys can see and perceive it the way I did. We've went through Sam and Greg's vague meeting and see how Steven sees his guardians, so all that's left is this.**

 **Thank you for all the reviews and favourites and for following me. I'll try to not let you down.**

 **Disclaimer: Steven Universe is not mine and it will never be. All of it belongs to Rebecca Sugar and her amazing Crewniverse! Keep up the great work, guys!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Greg abruptly sat up in alarm as the music on his mobile phone blared, with his dark eyes wide open and a large, meaty hand above his heart. The mattress he was currently sitting on squeaked and creaked as it shifted underneath his weight and for a while, Greg couldn't remember where he was. This… _place_ was not his van! _This was not the car wash!_

His head turned from left to right as his gaze swept all over the room's surface, and he tried recalling exactly what happened at the carwash for him to end up here. Then the bedroom door burst open and a woman appeared in the doorway, with bed-ridden, long, brown hair and a sour expression on her face. Greg squinted at the sudden burst of bright light and scrunched up his face.

"S-Sam?"

"Greg." Sam replied. "What the fuck?"

"W-what-"

Sam groaned, ran her hand down her face and pulled on her hair before she pointed to his phone on the nightstand. "Turn that shit off. Some of us are trying to sleep."

Greg froze in confusion for a moment before realization dawned on him and he apologized. "Oh, _OH_! O-okay, okay. Sorry, Sam." In an instant, the alarm was turned off and Sam trudged back to her room, all the while grumbling under her breath, something about waking up late and jogging, and Greg was left alone again. He sighed and wiped a hand from his forehead down to his chin.

 _That's right,_ he told himself. It was all coming back to him. _Sam; their father; one month; dying._

Greg stretched his hands and his back, before he struggled out of the blankets and off of the bed. He was shirtless; only wearing a pair of old shorts he found in the drawers, before making his way to the bathroom to freshen himself up.

The feel of hot water against his skin was _heavenly,_ it was a sensation he hadn't felt in a very long time that he'd actually forgotten what it felt like. Usually Greg would just wash himself in the Wash's lavatory or the hose. He could certainly get used to waking up like this again- in a soft, luxurious bed with numerous pillows and a proper mattress that'd work wonders with his back. Greg sighed again; the perks of returning home were tempting, truly. But it'll take more than comfort and luxury to win him over. He's not giving in that easy.

After the shower and putting on a clean pair of grey pants and a blue shirt, he made his way down to the kitchen for some breakfast. Sam was already there, with her silky tresses up in a high, messy bun and a grey cotton robe. She was sipping on something hot, probably coffee, judging from the scent that's filled the entire kitchen, with a bitter expression and her right eye twitching madly.

"Morning." He greeted her, and Sam grunted in return. He made his way to the stove and poured himself some hot water from the kettle to make himself his own drink. "Someone's grumpy," Greg continued. "Bad night, Sam?"

Sam snorted and rolled her eyes. "Fuck you."

A small smile appeared on Greg's lips and he made his way to sit across her. "Good morning." He tried again, and Sam sighed. _"Good morning, Greg."_ She replied and shot him a toothy, sarcastic smile.

"I thought you wanted to go back to bed?"

Sam shrugged. "I did, but something came up and I couldn't." Her answer made a speck of worry appear inside of him and he raised a curious eyebrow. "Something I could help you with?"

Sam set the mug onto the table gently, careful with the temperature of the ceramic, and crossed her arms. "Nah, it's fine now." She paused. "Thanks, Greg." Greg shrugged and continued enjoying his tea. They shared a comfortable moment of blissful silence, before Greg cleared his throat and ruined it all.

"So, do you always wake up early or have I interrupted your… uh, beauty sleep?"

That earned a chuckle from his younger sister. "Dude, I _do not_ need sleep to be pretty." Greg laughed as well, and that sets a lighter mood over their atmosphere. "So, you got somewhere to go, pretty boy?" Sam inquired.

"I got work, Sam."

"The Carwash?" She asked again for confirmation, and he nodded. "Come on, man. I'm in town! No one will notice _or care_ if it's not open for one day! Let's have fun!"

Greg's smile slowly disappeared and he studied Sam with an unnerving stare. "You know Sam, you remind me of a friend here in Beach City. She hates it when I do my job, too."

Sam frowned and her mouth opened to shoot a reply but found that she couldn't. It seemed like the start of a bad argument. "Uh, dude; _chill_. I won't force you to leave your precious job if you don't want to. Jeez."

Greg's smile returned and he shook his head. "You guys even talk same. You could be best buds."

"Greg, thanks but no thanks. I'm not five, you know." Sam replied and took another sip of her coffee. "What's her name, anyway?"

"Amethyst."

" _Her real name_ , Gregory."

Greg laughed and nearly choked his tea. "That is her real name. It really is." Sam exhaled in disbelief. "Really now? She sounds like a fun person."

Greg shook his head. "I agree. She totally is. Hey, you guys should meet." Sam finished up the last of her coffee and stood to drop and wash the mug in the sink. "Maybe later, Greg. When all of this is over, I'll think about it."

"So, what are you doing today?"

Sam put the mug on a nearby dish-rack and turned to face her brother. "Oh, I don't know. Usually I jog but today I thought about taking a break. Wait, I remembered something. Do you still have the deeds for this house with you?"

Greg's cheeks began to blush a bright red and he smiled apologetically. Sam huffed and threw her hands up. "I knew it. You've lost it somewhere, didn't you?" She asked. Greg rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "I-I… well, you're not wrong, per say; but I think I might have put it in the storage unit building and forgot about it. Or maybe it's in my van."

Sam sighed but smiled anyway. "Then I'll go look for it after lunch; or maybe before lunch?" she asked herself and shrugged. "Meh, either way I'll look for it later on today."

"I'll help you look for it a little bit in the evening if you still haven't found by then."

"Okay, thanks."

Greg finished up the rest of his drink and washed it up in the sink. Then, with a smile, he made his way out of the kitchen. "Well Sam, I'm off. Have fun."

"Yeah, okay." Sam nodded and gave him a small wave. "Bye Greg."

…

Sam hummed on a little tune as she finished up locking the mansion door and walked to her car. She was wearing a pair of short, faded blue jeans with her sandals and an unbuttoned green and black plaid outer shirt on top of a white cotton chemise. A pair of modern sunglasses was positioned on top of her head and a brown, leather watch was around her left wrist. She carried a small purse in her hand, and her phone was set in her pants' back pocket.

The engine whirred to life smoothly and Sam began her journey back into town. After Greg had left, Sam had randomly decided to make hers and Greg's beds. She'd thrown their laundry into the washing machine and turned it on. It'll be done the time she gets back, and then she could throw it into the dryer.

Halfway through her journey, Sam realized that she has no idea where she's going and that she had forgotten to ask Greg where the storage unit buildings were. Cursing to herself, Sam decided to ask some random person where it might be. She spotted a blonde woman in overalls painting something decidedly purple in her front yard and stopped her car.

"Hey!" Sam called out to the woman. "Excuse me?"

The person turned her attention towards Sam and tucked the paintbrush she was holding onto behind her ear. "Yeah?"

"I was wondering if you could help me with some directions."

The woman walked closer to Sam's car and placed her hands on her hips and smiled. "Well, sure. What are you looking for?"

Sam took off her shades and smiled back. "Um, do you know any storage unit buildings in town?" The woman brought and tapped a finger to her chin in consideration. "Well, there's like, two, but the nearest would be the U Storage Unit. It's straight then left, and then right after you reach the traffic light. Then go straight and you're there. It's the one surrounded with an iron fence; you won't miss it."

Sam sighed in relief and nodded thankfully towards the woman. "Thank you very much."

"You're welcome. Have a good day."

"Yeah, you too."

She followed the directions exactly and found herself standing by the building not long after. A phone call to Greg revealed that his would be the last one on the right, and that it wasn't locked because he'd lost the keys to that one, as well. Sam rolled her eyes at the newfound information and ended the call after telling him that she'd keep her eyes open for the keys in her search.

Greg's storage unit was a complete and total mess. Even just by looking at it gave Sam a headache. Sure enough, it took more than a while to get layer after layer of miscellaneous stuff out in the streets and another long while to sift through it for any sign of the deed. By a little bit past noon, Sam had worked through half of the space and still she couldn't find it.

Eventually, Sam decided to pause the search process and go get lunch. It was pretty damned tiring going through box after box, her seemingly never-ending disappointment and frustration that multiplied with the heat of the area, and all of Greg's stuff were mostly CDs and old band records that were kind of cool but not what she was looking for.

She drove her car and parked her car at the usual space next to the pizza shop. Her hair flew like curtains in the wind as she walked down the boardwalk while deciding on what to have for lunch. She's been in the mood for fries lately and settled on having some of that. Sam whistled as she made her way to the counter, where Pee Dee was holding fort, just as usual.

"Welcome to the Fry Shop, ma'am. Can I take your order?"

Sam laughed and took off her shades, and Pee Dee's expression turned into one of delighted surprise. "Sam?"

"Yeah, Pee Dee; it's me. How's it going?"

Pee Dee's posture relaxed and a wide smile appeared on his lips. "Heh, you know; same old, same old. Business is kind of slow today, though. You're our first customer."

"Really now?" Sam questioned. "Well, in that case I better make your start of the day pretty good, right? Give me the heavy lunch set, a large Coke and a side of mashed potatoes."

"I see you're pretty hungry. Been doing some heavy work lately?" Pee Dee asked as he prepared her order. Sam pulled out her phone to check on her messages as she kept up with the conversation. "Yeah. It's been a rather strenuous morning if I don't say so myself."

"Huh, really? I didn't see you jog this morning."

"Nah, I decided to skip for today and wake up late. Didn't go exactly to plan, though, because my idiot of a brother forgot or something to turn his alarm off."

Pee Dee clicked his tongue. "So Mr Universe is living with you now?"

"Yeah, no way I'm letting Greg sleep in a van while I'm around. Which reminds me, thanks again for the heads up the other day, by the way."

Pee Dee placed a tray, set with her order onto the counter and shrugged. "No big deal. That 'll be 13 dollars. Would you like some tissues with that?"

Sam handed him the money and nodded her head. "Thanks, Pee Dee. Some tissues would be nice."

Pee Dee leaned to the side to get some tissues from underneath the counter when he realized that they were standing beneath a growing shadow. His head immediately shot up and his eyes widened in a mix of surprise and fright.

"SAM, LOOK OUT!"

Sam's head turned just in time to spot the creature coming down from the sky and jumped over the counter to push Pee Dee out of harm's way. They crashed into the wall as the creature, a shell with spikes and two heads and six legs completely destroyed the front of the shop before it roared and breathed out fire.

Sam couldn't believe what was happening. _What was this… this thing?!_ She was frozen in fear and shock as the monster thrashed around, causing more damage to the establishment before Pee Dee grab hold onto her shoulders and gave her a rough shake.

"Pee Dee," Sam finally said. " _What is going on?"_

"Sam, we _need_ to get out of here. These things happen around here often. We need to get out, and get away from here."

" _B-but what-"_

"Get out now; questions later."

Pee Dee pulled Sam carefully over the fallen debris and objects and guided her to the exit. A particularly large piece was in the way but there was a small space at the bottom they could crawl through to get to the dining space. Sam forced Pee Dee to go first because he was younger and smaller, and that would mean less hassle and less time would be wasted for the both of them to get out. Pee Dee did not complain. He simply dropped to all fours and began crawling.

As soon as Pee Dee disappeared, Sam lowered herself and drew a sharp breath. In the chaos, a piece of glass had accidentally pierced into and injured her left palm. She bit on her lip to avoid crying out and hissed through her teeth. There was no way out of it. She steadied herself, pinched onto the smooth glass and began pulling it out, drawing blood. The glass was quite big, and it was in deeper than Sam had thought. Her breaths came in heavy, laboured pants and tears were flowing down her cheeks. Never had she been so scared in her life.

The monster roared again and she screamed, her eyes were closed as spikes flew into the wall behind her and a narrow one embedded itself into her right shoulder, making Sam fall forcefully fall onto her knees. She opened her eyes to the blurry sight of the whole place in flames and the monster still thrashing around in panic, as if trying to get out. Her gaze travelled to the little hole and she couldn't help the whine of disappointment when she saw that it was gone.

This was it. This was how her life was going to end. Trapped in a burning building with a monster that might or might not eat her corpse after she dies.

Her shoulder hurt like hell, and she couldn't feel her arm from the shard and her legs were jelly- she could go on and on about her injuries at the moment, but decided not to. Sam cradled her arm- the one pierced with the long, narrow spike and sobbed. Then a miracle happened.

There was a yell, and Sam witnessed as how someone, a very tall someone with a distinguished, square afro, punch through the wall and attacked the creature with a pair of gauntlets. Then more appeared- there was a short, purple woman with long, white hair with whips and finally, a tall, pale person with a spear.

"STEVEN!" The tall one cried, and a boy appeared on the back of a pink lion with a pink shield in his hand. There were shouts exchanged over the whole discourse, which Sam could not comprehend, but somehow, the boy was thrown back into a wall and the ceiling above him threatened to fall. Sam acted out of instinct. She had no idea whether this whole thing was real or just figments or her imagination, but there was in no way she was about to watch a small kid being crushed to death.

Sam sped to his side and hugged him into her chest. The boy was shocked, and before she lost consciousness, she could hear someone call her name.

" _\- Sam?"_

"… _Ste...ven…"_

Then a huge chunk of ceiling fell on top of them and all was black.

* * *

 **The beginning of Steven and Sam's meeting. I really hate stopping this chapter like this but I couldn't think of how to continue without it being too long and weird. So the next few chapters will be about Sam's meeting and interaction with her nephew and the Crystal Gems, and Greg gets bashed. Whoa, boy.**

 **Read and review.**

 **Thank you.**


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

 **Author's note: Sam meets Steven and the Gems; p2 (Need I say more?;)) Thank you for all the reviews, favourites and followers. You guys are the best!**

 **Disclaimer: Steven Universe belongs to Rebecca Sugar and her Crewniverse. None of it is mine, except for my OC Sam.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

The bright lights of the hospital room Sam currently occupied blinded her eyes and Sam groaned softly in a mixture of pain and irritation. Her throat felt sore and her voice sounded rough, like sandpaper against a piece of wood.

"Quick, call the doctor. The patient is awake."

She squinted at the source of the feminine voice with a distasteful frown on her lips and a killer headache throbbing in her head. Everything hurt. She found that she couldn't move her arms and every breath she took hurt her chest. It was awhile when her sight finally adjusted to the room's brightness and her headache abruptly intensified.

Sam muttered a curse under her breath and shook her head slightly in effort to tone it down. It didn't work. She cursed again. Footsteps echoed as a person or two neared her bed.

"Miss Universe, can you hear me?"

Sam scrunched her forehead and gritted her teeth. She wanted to answer the question, but found that she couldn't, really. It felt like there was a lump in her throat. " _Water."_ Sam finally croaked, and in a flash a small, paper cup was held to her lips and plain water was poured slowly into her mouth.

"Better?" the voice asked again, gently, and Sam gave it a little nod and cleared her throat.

"Yes," she answered, her voice weak, and cleared her throat again. "W-what? Where?"

She turned her gaze to the doctor, an Indian woman with long hair and a stern, yet soft expression. "You're in the hospital, Miss Universe. You have been unconscious for three days. Do you remember what happened?"

Sam gulped. _Three days?!_ Her eyes widened in surprise, which eventually morphed into panic when she remembered the incident at the fry shop. Where was Steven now? Is he okay?

" _S-Steven?"_

A gentle smile formed onto the doctor's lips and she put her board to the side. "He's safe, Miss Universe. And so is the youngest Fryman boy. You gave them quite the scare, you know, especially the one you saved back in the shop."

Sam sighed in relief and the doctor laughed. "Don't you want to hear about your injuries? Thankfully, nothing too severe. To put it simply, some stitches on your hand and we had to pull out the stake from your elbow, which of course, also needed stitching and re-adjusting. You have a number of scars and scrapes on multiple parts of your body, a large bruise on the side of your head from a large impact by the fallen ceiling and your stomach."

"H-how long?"

"Oh, I'd say about two weeks with a proper exercise schedule and plenty of vitamins and rest you'll be as good as new."

Sam nodded. Two weeks isn't that bad. She can do two weeks. Sure, she'll need to re-arrange her schedule and everything but it's not like she's un-adaptable. Greg can do the heavy work. Besides, her legs should be fine. The most injury she's had is on her arms. She's not completely useless. _You know, speaking of Greg…_

"Uh," Sam squeaked again. "Greg? Has- has he been-"

"My name is Priyanka Maheswaran. You can call me Priyanka. Your, well, your brother is a… close friend of my family. He's being alerted of your current condition even as we speak. I expect him to come visit you soon."

A feeling of warmth blossomed in the pit of her stomach and Sam graced the decidedly nice woman with a large smile. "T-thank you…"

"You're absolutely welcome. Now, I'll send in another nurse with some porridge and more water- you should be hungry after three days of sleep-"

Sam's stomach growled, as if on cue, and she blushed while the doctor burst into laughter. "I'll take that as a yes." Priyanka pat on Sam's hand and smiled kindly towards her patient. "Now, rest. Your nurse will come in with the food later."

…

Greg gingerly pushed the heavy, white door and poked his head into the room. He wore a concerned frown on his face, which disappeared into a thin line when he saw that Sam was sitting facing the window, in a wheelchair.

"Sam?"

Sam turned her head to face her brother. "Greg," she greeted him. "Hey."

Greg walked over to her and crossed his arms. "You're not supposed to get up from your bed, Sam." Sam rolled her eyes and blew a stray strand of brown hair away from her face. "Whatever, dude. My legs are fine."

Greg pushed her wheelchair away from the window anyway and helped her back onto the bed. Sam groaned. "Ugh, I hate sitting in this thing. Makes me feel… _weak_." Those words brought Greg to think about their father. He despised any signs of weakness as well. He was also about to point the fact out to Sam, but wisely decided against it.

"So," He began. "How do you feel?"

"Dude," Sam replied. "I feel like I've been hit by a bus carrying a ton of obese people each carrying a ton of bricks."

Greg sighed. "I was really worried when I heard about what happened at the shop." It caught Sam's attention and she sat straighter. "Pee Dee told me these things happen usually around here. What the hell does that mean?"

"Well… uh, that's complicated. But yeah, it does make life more exciting to think about it. Look, I'm not exactly the right person to tell you about this stuff."

"What? Is it supposed to be some sort of secret or something?" Sam snorted with a humorous smile. Greg bit on his lip and turned his gaze away, and Sam threw her head up and groaned again.

"You know what? Whatever, I don't care anymore. All I had were some injuries caused by some- some alien or monster or whatever and cut my hand, a stake pierced through my shoulder and have a ceiling fall on me. I was only unconscious for three days."

Greg threw his hands up in frustration. "I could have really done without the sarcasm, Sam." Sam stuck out her tongue and turned her head away.

"Did- did you just stick your tongue out at me?"

"…"

"SAM!"

"…"

Greg placed his hands on his hips. "Goddamnit; _you will look at me while I'm talking to you, Samantha!"_

Sam's head whipped back to meet Greg's face with her own expression of disbelief. "Oh my God." She whispered in horror. Greg seemed to realize his mistake and immediately he started apologizing.

"Oh my God, Sam, I am so sorry-"

" _Oh my God."_

"Please, Sam, I-I-"

" _Greg."_ Sam interrupted him. " _No. Just-just stop."_

The atmosphere between them grew tense as Sam gave Greg a deathly glare, with all the hate she could muster from every inch of her being reflected in her eyes, and Greg had to look away. He had just destroyed his sister's trust. Sam held it for a moment longer, and then she turned away again, and drew in a deep breath.

"It's okay," she finally said. "I don't expect you to stay the same after all these years. I guess… I guess I was just expecting the impossible. I deserved it, Greg."

"No, Sam-"

"Greg, it's okay. Let's just move past this." She sighed. "Why don't you start from the beginning? What was that creature that attacked the fry shop?"

Greg scratched the back of his neck and cleared his throat. "I'm really sorry, Sam. I really, really want to tell about it but I was advised not to." Sam narrowed her eyes in irritation. " _Who_ exactly advised you?"

"Uh, th-they're on their way. I swear; you'll get the whole thing soon."

"…Okay."

Something beeped in Greg's pocket and he pulled out his phone. His face lit up slightly and after typing some sort of response to the message, he turned to look at Sam again. The guilt was still apparent in his expression; it was not very well hidden. But his manner of talking was somewhat lighter.

"Well, Steven just texted me that they have arrived and are currently making their way to this room."

Sam raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Steven?"

Suddenly the door creaked and the both of them turned their attentions towards it. A little boy with a head of dark, curly hair peeked in with a hesitant look on his face. But as seeing her and Greg in the room, a huge smile replaced the expression and he pushed the door open bigger.

"SAM! YOU'RE OKAY!"

He ran to her and jumped onto the bed, making it shake and Sam's eyes widened in surprise. _"Whoa, there buddy!_ Take it easy!"

There were stars in the little boy's eyes, and despite how much she wanted to reprimand him to go softer on her, Sam found that she couldn't and smiled at him instead. Steven pulled her into a bone-crushing hug and Sam was surprised at how strong the boy was. Sam was starting to have trouble breathing when suddenly somebody picked Steven up from her lap and set him down back onto the floor.

Sam coughed and drew in several deep breaths to reregulate her breathing. "I'm sorry, Sam," Steven apologized sheepishly as he drew circles on the floor with the tip of his sandal.

"It's just that, I had been so worried when you didn't wake up after I used my bubble to throw the ceiling off and we had to take you to the hospital because you were hurt pretty bad. I even used my healing spit on you. It made the wound smaller but it didn't close off entirely."

Sam waved his apology off with a confused smile. Bubble? Throw off the ceiling? _Healing spit? What in the world was going on?_

"Uh, it's okay I guess? Thank you, Steven."

"Steven's saliva has the ability to heal, and he had used it the other day to close off your bigger wounds before we had head to the hospital." A deep, accented voice explained thus interrupting their conversation and Sam turned her attention to her other guests in the room. The first thing that caught her attention was a pair of legs.

Legs that ran for days in a pair of tight, maroon-coloured some sort of fabric probably, that led to huge, captivating thighs and an impossibly slim waist, and a generous bust and upper body that made Sam blush, to finally, the head; full, luscious lips, a nose and eyes hidden behind a pair of reflective shades and a square-ish dark-coloured afro.

"I'm Garnet," Garnet introduced herself, and gestured to the others with her thumb. "This is Amethyst."

Amethyst stood way, _way_ shorter than Garnet, probably just a little above Steven's height, with a head of wild, luxurious, light-lavender tresses that went to her feet. Her most distinctive feature was her skin, which was purple. She wore a black, sleeveless tank top with a slim waist that highlighted her short, yet curvaceous body structure and a pair of matching mauve leggings with black stars on the knee area and white ankle boots. Amethyst was… _stocky_ ; adorable yet not completely innocent-looking with plump lips, one of her eyes was covered underneath a lock of hair that obscured half of her face whilst the other was half-lidded and gleamed with mischief. A purple gem was embedded just above her chest area.

" 'Sup?" Amethyst greeted and playfully fired a finger gun in her direction. Her voice was raspy and her tone energetic. Sam nodded in understanding and graced Amethyst with a smile. Amethyst looked to be her type of person and she wondered if this was the one Greg told her about the other day.

"And onto my right is Pearl."

Pearl was… well, she stood up to Garnet's shoulders, which was a feat in and of as itself. Pearl has a slender, slim build with smooth, ivory skin and wide, curious sky-blue eyes and a pointed nose. Her hair was short and was pointed at the back of her head, with a peach-ish colour that suited her whole look. Her attention getter was the large gemstone on her forehead, but it was… _nice_ ; a very pleasing feature to look at. She wore a light blue tunic-slash-leotard with a small, golden star at the centre and a sash around her upper waist that knotted at the back of her body with matching thigh-high amber-coloured leggings, pink socks and blue ballet flats. Pearl looked like a dancer- she emitted an aura of confidence, elegance and grace, and slight hostility, which was quite understandable looking at the fact that they have just met each other.

"And I'm guessing that you've already met Steven- he's the youngest in our team." Garnet continued and Sam nodded again. "We are the Crystal Gems."

"Wait," Sam interrupted her. " _Crystal Gems?_ As in ' _We are the Crystal Gems; and we'll always save the day'_ Crystal Gems?"

Her comment made Amethyst laugh and Steven smile wider. "You remembered my song!" He cried out happily and Sam couldn't help but gush at his adorableness.

"Well, yeah kid. Your voice is really something- _I thought I told you that?"_

" _Hey!"_ Amethyst suddenly spoke up. "You're the Sam Steven told us he'd met the beach the other day, aren't you? The one that told him to say hi to us?"

"Well yeah." Sam answered her. "That's me alright. It's nice that I can put faces to names now that I've met all of you _." And that now I know that you're actually real._

"Oh, well what you did was very nice and polite." Pearl piped up. She had a voice that was soothing and soft. "It's hard to meet people nowadays that actually minded their manners when meeting with someone. We'd like to thank you, actually, for saving Steven back at the building during our fight with that monster. You were very brave and selfless, and you protected him even when you were hurt."

"Yes," Garnet continued. "Usually we don't do this but for that, we figured some sort of explanation about what happened."

"Yeah," Sam replied and glanced over to Greg, who had sat himself onto the single chair by the bed. "That was what I'd been asking Greg earlier before you guys came along- I asked him to tell me about what happened and he answered that he wasn't the best person to tell me about it."

"Actually, Sam," Pearl said with a raise of her finger. "We were the ones who had told him not to tell you. Garnet decided that it was best to explain to you in person about who we actually are and what happened. Greg might… not understand fully to provide an accurate answer for any questions you may want to ask of the incident."

Sam raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "Okay then. Start from the beginning."

Garnet and Amethyst turned to look at Pearl and the pale gem began her explanation. "You see Sam, that thing that we had fought back at the shop was a gem monster; to put it simply. A creature that was once like me and Garnet and Amethyst, but was corrupted with a disease that made it lose all that it once was and changed its form- their memories and sense of purpose and essentially their whole self. It had no control over itself and attacked over the course of survival. The monster was one of many that we were locating and collecting so that they may not cause chaos or harm to human beings and the Earth. Do you understand?"

"… Actually, you kinda lost me somewhere at gem monster. You mean that thing was actually once _human?_ "

"Um, no," Pearl answered her and gestured to herself. "But we are not humans. We're gems- a species originating from another planet far from Earth and are more than millennia years old. We're aliens, as your people say, and we protect the Earth from dangerous threats and creatures that might harm its peace and safety for all living creature to flourish."

Sam shot Pearl a look that said _'really?'_ and sighed. "I get it now." She turned to look at Greg and scowled. "You think you're so funny, don't you Greg?"

Greg raised his eyebrow in confusion. _"What?_ "

"Okay, maybe you're trying to make me feel better but it isn't working. You guys can drop the ' _we're aliens'_ act now. I appreciate the gesture but I am totally not feeling any better about this. I asked for the truth, not some… cover-up story about mutations and outer space. Was it Greg's idea? Because he's always had a weird _space_ fetish since forever and that makes more sense."

" _I beg your pardon?"_ Greg interrupted them. "I _do not_ have a space fetish."

"Greg, you write songs about stars and comets and the design on your van is making it quite obvious that I am right."

Greg spluttered. "Uh, well that's more to a hobby, Sam. An interest- that's what it is."

Garnet took a step nearer to Sam and re-adjusted her shades. "It isn't a lie; Sam. Look at Amethyst- her skin is purple. Pearl has a gem stuck to her forehead. Think about it. No human being is like that."

Sam rolled her eyes stubbornly. "Well, she could've used skin make-up and you could probably get an accessory like Pearl's gem somewhere in a costume shop."

"Well, what about back at the Fry shop?" Pearl countered with a frown, slightly offended over the remark Sam made about her gem but kept patient. "Didn't you see how Garnet was able to punch through the wall with her gauntlets or how Steven had appeared at the back of a pink lion?"

"…I was seriously hurt! I could've just been seeing things!"

Amethyst crossed her arms. "Really dude, seeing things? Look, look. Why not I show you something cool?" The gem on her chest glowed and she shape-shifted her head into a shark head and she waved her hands. "Jazz-hands!"

Sam froze and her eyes widened. Steven and Greg exchanged worried glances. "Uh, Sam?" Steven called.

" _Holy crap! S-she- what? But how?"_

"Yeah, I turned my head into an alligator." Amethyst said smugly and turned her head back. Sam continued to stare at Amethyst and her mouth opened and closed repeatedly like a fish. "B-b-b-b-but-"

"You see, Sam?" Garnet asked her and lowered her shades, revealing her three, multi-coloured eyes, in to which Sam had almost yelped in surprise, but didn't. "We told the truth." She put her shades back on and crossed her arms.

"B-but it's impossible." Sam whispered to herself and Pearl shook her head. "No, Sam. There are a lot of things you don't know about the Earth- its secrets and wonders. I admit it was hard for me for to accept it originally as well. You, my dear," Pearl pointed at her and Sam blushed. "Have a lot to learn."

An odd silence dawned in the room as Sam tried comprehending what happened. Steven felt bad that they made Sam feel scared and took it to himself to lighten the mood. He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Um, well. Now that that's out of the way, maybe later I could help you find that person you were looking for, eh Sam?"

Sam's left eye twitched, she was still so shocked about her discovery that she forgot that her and Greg's relationship was supposed to be a secret.

"Found him," she mumbled. "It was Greg."

Steven looked from Sam to his dad, back to Sam. "You were looking for my dad?" he asked her in confusion. Sam immediately snapped out of her reverie and her eyes widened again.

" _What?!"_

She looked at her brother who'd also worn a surprised expression. " _Dad?_ You have a _son_ and you didn't tell me?"

"Uh…"

Sam face-palmed herself and yelped in pain. Steven turned towards Greg and raised a concerned eyebrow. "How do _you_ know Sam, dad?"

"Um, well. She's my younger sister. Your aunt, Steven."

The whole room went quiet as everyone turned to look at Sam, who was currently cradling her injured hand. Stars appeared in Steven's eyes as they widened in wonder and awe and he cupped his cheeks in delight _._

" _I have an aunt!"_

"You're Greg's _sister?"_ Amethyst questioned with a shocked expression, before it rapidly turned into a huge smile. Garnet nodded and touched a finger to the side of her shades. All seemed well, that it, until a scream broke out amidst the excitement and all turned to look at Pearl, whose eyes had taken on an edge of disbelief.

" _Another Universe?!"_

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 **Review, my dear readers. Is it too much? Should I re-write it into a simpler version of this one and simplify the dialogue? I really need your opinion on this one.**


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

 **Author's note: Hello again dear readers and WOW! THANK YOU!** _ ***takes a bow***_ **I got A LOT OF POSITIVE REVIEWS about the last chapter and it really made my day! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I felt really happy because I fulfilled many of your expectations for the gems' (especially Pearl's) first meeting with Sam. I hope I can continue making you guys happy with this story and if you have some suggestions with it, then feel free to review or PM me.**

 **Aside from that, who else is excited for the new Steven Universe episodes?! Woo Hoo! I can't wait for Gem Harvest and Three Gems and A Baby! And the new character, of course. It may have been a rough week for some of you after the recent current issues but it'll get better. Have hope. Be strong. Stay positive. You are important. You are valuable and don't let other people tell you otherwise.**

 **To luciayshadow: I was so delighted at your response and decided to put that line, though not exactly in the chapter. Thank you!**

 **To Lady Shadow92: Yeah! She's in for more delightfully shocking surprises. Thank you!**

 **Disclaimer: Nothing in this story belongs to me, except for my oc, Sam. You can thank Rebecca Sugar and her amazing Crewniverse for the others.**

 **Enjoy!**

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" _Another Universe?!"_

Pearl looked absolutely _horrified._ She backed herself into a wall, began hyperventilating and fanned her face with her hand. "This-this cannot be happening. _DREAM!_ A-a bad dream, that's what this is. I-I must've ate one of those _foul things_ and-and fell asleep. Yes, _yes!_ "

Watching her reaction, Amethyst began laughing so hard that she promptly fell onto the floor and clutched on her stomach hard. "Oh, _oh! This is priceless!_ She-AHA-she says she's _dreaming!_ Ah ha ha HA!" Amethyst slapped on her knee and pulled herself into a crawling position. "-Ahahaha- _Yeah, P!_ You`re totally _dreaming!"_ Amethyst's teary eyes opened and darted around the room and coincidentally fell onto a bottle of liquid something that was sitting on top of the hospital bed's side table. She rose to her feet, took the bottle and presented it to the slim gem with excited anticipation. " _QUICK, quick-_ drink this! Maybe it'll make you wake up!"

That was when Garnet had stepped in between them and snatched the bottle from Amethyst before Pearl gets to it. "Amethyst," she chided the purple gem. "No."

"Aw, Garnet, come on!"

Pearl made a desperate grab for Garnet's arm and began to plead. "Please, Garnet; tell me. I'm-I'm dreaming, aren't I? You cannot possibly believe that-that this woman is-is-"

Garnet shook her head and stretched her hand to return the bottle back to the table. "You're not dreaming, Pearl. Sam is Greg's younger sister." She answered and Pearl froze. She fell to her knees and then fell sideways onto the floor with a dull thud. Pearl was trembling as she hugged her knees to her chest and mumbled a mantra repeatedly.

"Pearl?" Steven called aloud in concern and went to kneel next to her when she didn't reply. Greg scrunched his forehead as he leaned in slightly to better assess the situation. "I think we've broke her."

Amethyst still has a wide smile on her face and she nudged for Steven to poke on Pearl's nose. "Do it, Steven!"

"A-are you sure?" Steven asked her and looked up to Garnet for guidance. Garnet shrugged. Then Steven shrugged and held out a finger slowly to poke at Pearl's nose. "Pearl? A-are you okay?" Pearl gave no response, but she went absolutely still and Garnet sighed.

"I'm sorry, I better take her home. This has been quite a shock for her." Garnet picked Pearl up from the floor and cradled her in her arms. She gave a small nod towards Sam and headed out the door. "Amethyst, let's go."

"But Garnet," Amethyst whined. "Why?"

Garnet turned to give the gem a small glance before continuing her exit and Amethyst huffed. "What about Steven?" She asked further and Garnet paused.

"Steven can stay."

Amethyst groaned and Steven gave a small cheer. Amethyst went to Sam's bedside and patted surprisingly gently onto her injured shoulder. "Dude," she whispered. "Get better and let's hang out sometime, okay?"

Sam was still too tongue-tied from everything to answer her but Amethyst nodded anyway and winked at her.

"See ya."

After the last of the gems left the room, the atmosphere dulled again and the silence returned, which was much welcomed by Greg after the chaotic gusto about Sam. Sam was still for a very long time. Steven turned his attention back towards Sam and cleared his throat. "Sorry about that. Pearl… kind of over-reacts sometimes; but she actually very nice! She'll get better, you'll see."

Sam's mouth began to open and close but no words came out. Steven laughed sheepishly and rubbed on the back of his neck.

"I… what just happened?"

Greg laughed awkwardly. "Uh… I guess you just met with the Crystal Gems. They kind of look after Steven when I work and stuff."

"I am really, really confused right now."

Steven laughed again. "That's okay. Everyone thinks that too when they first meet with the Crystal Gems. I promise it gets better when you meet them again."

Sam doesn't know what to reply to that so she just gave a simple nod and swallowed a suffocating lump that was in her throat. "Son." She uttered. She turned her head and glared hotly towards her brother, which made Greg gulp.

"Now Sam, I was really going to-"

" _YOU HAVE A SON AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME!"_

Greg reeled back in fear. "I-I didn't think-"

"You _what, Greg? You didn't think_ what _exactly?"_

"It-actually- it kind of slipped my mind when we were talking about…" Greg cleared his throat and looked away distractedly. "-talking about Father." He whispered.

Sam's shoulders sagged and she sighed. "Boy, what a day." Then, she turned her attention towards the young boy by her bed and gave a weak, curious smile. "So, Steven. How old are you?"

"People say I look nine but I'm actually 14."

Sam was shocked. "Really? Whoa. And you've been-" she cringed. "You've been living in Greg's van for fourteen years? W-what about school?"

"Oh, sometimes I sleep in the van with dad but mostly I stay with the gems at the temple. My bed's there and everything. And I don't go to school because Pearl says she teaches better than any of the teachers there. She's really smart and even though sometimes I can go to school like my best friend Connie does, I trust her."

Sam was rendered speechless again. "You… don't go to school?"

"Well, I told you that-"

"No, Steven. I'm not talking to you." She turned to Greg. "Why does he not go to school, Greg? Is it because of money? Do you need more money? Oh my God, how regular do you guys eat before this? I hope you didn't starve too badly."

"Sam, relax." Greg assured her. "I got lots of money. One of my songs actually made into a commercial and I'm kind of loaded. The Gems are Steven's caretakers. I guess Pearl teaching him would be better than sending him to regular school. He's not actually a regular kid, Sam."

"I get that whole 'My Kid is Special' trope, Greg, but not sending him to school like other kids is bad parenting! You could get arrested!"

"No, Sam." Greg interrupted her. "You don't understand. Steven is really not like other kids. He's, well, um. How do I say this?"

Steven pulled his shirt up for a bit and revealed the pink gem on his stomach. "I'm half-gem. On my mom's side. Her name was Rose Quartz."

Sam's eyes widened again as she studied the object. "Half-alien?" she inquired in disbelief and Steven lowered his shirt again. "You actually did it!"

"Who?"

"Greg! YOU FUCKED AN ALIEN! AND MADE A BABY!"

Steven's eyes widened and he cupped his mouth. "Bad word!" He cried and Greg narrowed his eyes. "Please refrain from speaking rude words in front of my son."

"Well, it was okay when I used one before when the gems were in the room."

Greg placed his arms on his hips. "It was a heated moment. Steven probably felt bad to interrupt you. Now that that's over, thank God, it's best to go back to talk like _polite, responsible_ adults again." He stressed on certain words so that Sam would get the deeper meaning, and sure enough, she did.

"So when are you coming out of this place? Oh, oh; where are you staying? Can I come and visit you afterwards?"

Sam shrugged. "Well, yeah, sure. There's nothing wrong with that I suppose. Why don't I give you a call when I'm finally out and you can help me with my stuff, alright?"

"Yes!"

Sam laughed. Cute boy. Greg shook his head. "And about the will, I found it hidden in my van's compartment. I brought your car back to the house. And Steven already helped me clean up the storage unit."

"Oh my God, I totally forgot all about my precious baby!"

Steven's eyes lit up again and he grinned. "You have a baby?"

"She's referring to her car, Steven. Right Sam?"

Steven's question caught her off guard. "Yeah. Have you seen it, Steven? My Aston Martin- has my brother shown it to you?" She answered anyway with a smile. Technically, she's not lying. Her car was one of her babies. It's not the proper time to tell Steven about it anyway. She'd planned on telling Greg after their father died. It's not hiding when you're going to tell someone about it anyway, right?

"Uh, no."

Sam rolled her eyes. "Has Greg even showed you the house he's been living in recently?"

"No. I suppose he hasn't." Steven turned his head towards Greg expectantly and the older man threw his hands up in the air. "Fine, fine! I forgot about it, okay? The past few days weren't the best for me, you know?"

Sam shook her head slowly and clicked her tongue. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Shame on you for keeping that from him. Shame on you."

"Yeah dad," Steven continued and shook his head too, like her. "Shame on you."

"Oh no. Is my own son turning against me?" Greg replied in a mocking shocked tone. He made a grab for Steven's stomach, making the boy gasp before he laughed aloud in delight as Greg rubbed on his hair. Sam looked on towards the two affectionately and sighed. This is what she waited her whole life for. Happiness and contentment like her brother; living a carefree life with his son and worrying about nothing.

 _It's almost there,_ Sam told herself. _Just a couple more weeks and I'll be free._

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 **The end of another chapter, faithful readers. What do you think? Review, comment; feel free to do anything you want.**

 **And by the way, maybe you guys can also check on another one of my stories? It's a Lapidot College/Human!AU fic called Keeping It in The Family. The Gems will be there. Please? Thank you!**


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

 **Author's note: I know it's been a long time and before I get on with anything, I would like to apologize for breaking my promise. I don't think I've got any good reason for putting off this chapter and others as well. The family's been facing some financial problems and I've taken on a couple of jobs to help with the expenses. I really, really am sorry. Besides, I've been writing and re-writing the chapter over and over again and that really adds up to the putting off.**

 **I thank all of you for your patience and to ChimaTigon, thanks for believing in me and this fic. Your the reason I held on.**

 **Now, on with the show.**

 **Disclaimer: Nothing in this story belongs to me, except for my oc, Sam. You can thank Rebecca Sugar and her amazing Crewniverse for the others.**

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Garnet released a deep sigh as she set Pearl down gently onto the sofa. Then she pulled herself back up and straightened her shades. It'd turned out to be a most eventful evening; a total roller coaster ride that was both shocking yet exciting at the same time. It's not to say that she had not predicted this- she had seen a future where theirs' and Sam's relationship would be stronger, but she did not expect Sam to be Greg's sister. Amethyst entered the house last and closed the door with a loud slam, causing Pearl to practically jump up and yelp aloud in fright.

"Amethyst!"

Amethyst looked offended. "What, I didn't do nothing, right? Sheesh, G! People think you'd be happier after meeting with another member of the family."

Garnet slowly shook her head. "I am happy that Steven has another human in his family besides Greg; it's going to do him a lot of good. However, Pearl's going to face a hard time now that she knows the truth about Sam. I know that it's not going to be easy for her to trust Greg's sister but trust me that this is important and we should help her along with it. Can you help me do that, Amethyst?"

Amethyst turned her head down, somewhat embarrassed of her previous actions and kicked her foot out towards the open air. Garnet crossed her arms across her chest. "Amethyst."

" _What_ , G?"

"Please, Amethyst." Garnet pleaded with a sigh and the purple gem blushed. "I can't do this alone."

Amethyst's eyes widened and she instinctively bit on her lip in surprise. There was a silence in the room as the purple gem struggled with her reply. "Yeah okay, fine." She said finally, and Garnet smiled. "Thank you, Amethyst. Now I understand if you want to go talk to Vidalia about this, okay? Let me deal with Pearl. I'll tell you if I need anything."

Amethyst shrugged and shuffled back out the temple door, off to her best friend's house to tell her of the latest news. The sun was hot as it shined down onto her hair and the sound of the waves crashing onto the shore helped her calm down. She allowed her journey down the steps to be slow as Garnet's words echoed in her mind. Garnet had actually pleaded for her help! Garnet; the strongest member of the Crystal Gems! The unbreakable leader whom Amethyst thought could do just about anything!

' _Please, Amethyst. I can't do this alone.'_

For once, Garnet trusted her to help with Pearl's condition and not the other way around. For once, Amethyst felt stronger, like she was much superior to the pale gem and she deeply appreciated it. Something warm and fuzzy fluttered in her stomach and Amethyst resisted the urge to sing out loud. A huge smile broke out on her lips and it kept growing and growing that Amethyst felt like her face was going to break apart in half. She jumped off the three last steps of the temple stairs and landed onto the warm sand in glee. Garnet trusts her!

Laughter tore out of her throat as she then began running towards Vidalia's house. For a while, Amethyst felt like there was nothing that could happen that could ruin her day. Everything was perfect!

…

A small smile appeared on Garnet's lips and she sighed in relief as hearing the familiar sounds of delight coming in from the beach. Knowing that Amethyst could be problematic with the issue, especially when she knew that it would put Pearl down a notch from her high horse, Garnet decided that it would be best that she be a bit lenient with her decisions. She decided to ask for Amethyst's help, knowing that it would help with Amethyst's self-esteem.

Now that that's out of the way, Garnet looked towards Pearl and crossed her arms. This other predicament was one of the instances she wished she was not the appointed leader of the Crystal Gems. Pearl was non-moving, she was completely oblivious to everything; it seems. She walked over to the pale gem and gingerly placed a hand onto Pearl's shoulder, in for which the latter flinched and Garnet couldn't help but grit her teeth.

"Pearl."

"…"

"I know you're there, Pearl."

Pearl gave out a soft, muffled reply and Garnet took off her shades. "You can't stay silent forever, Pearl." To Garnet's pleasant surprise, Pearl turned her cheek just slightly to meet with Garnet's gaze. Pearl looked defeated; she looked tired, weak. "Did you know that this would happen, Garnet?"

"Technically, no."

That caught Pearl's attention. How can something as crucial as this incident escape one of the many possibilities that Garnet can foresee? "No?" Pearl questioned.

"There were many possibilities that I've seen that show Sam being someone important in our lives. However, she being Greg's sister is not one of them. I don't know why, Pearl."

Pearl nodded her head. "I see."

"I know you do."

Pearl sighed. "I'm sorry, Garnet. I shouldn't have acted that way around… _Sam…_ but-" Garnet interrupted her with a raise of her palm. "I'm not the one you should be apologizing to, Pearl. Save it for Sam. And probably Steven, too; now that he knows she's his aunt. " The pale, thin gem flinched visibly at the mention of Steven's name.

" _Oh Stars_ ," Pearl sighed and shook her head in regret. "What will Steven think of me now?" she moaned. "I've just had that whole thing with Greg done and then _this! His aunt!"_ Garnet tenderly placed her palm onto Pearl's back to comfort her. "He'll understand that you were in shock and you needed your time to get it over with. You might have already solved your… Greg… issue, but this is a completely new thing, yeah?"

It took a while for Pearl to reply, but she did while weakly nodding her head. "Yes… I think so." Garnet blessed her with a small, warm smile. "Good. I know I asked for Amethyst's help but I think it'll be better if you could go on without `em." Pearl had to smile at that.

"Oh really, Garnet? And what's Amethyst's going to do?"

Garnet chuckled and shook her head slowly. "Oh Pearl, have faith. She's more capable than you thought you knew."

…

A couple of days and several odd-but-not-really incidents involving Steven's so-called-but-totally-legit 'healing spit' later, as overseen by Dr Maheswaran, Sam's injuries were as good as new. She was kind of convinced that somehow, _someway,_ she was dreaming because none of it made sense. This whole thing was freaky and she's not sure that it's in the good way, either. She's learned that yes, aliens exist and her older brother Gregory technically has a son with one of them named Rose Quartz.

Rose Quartz, Amethyst, Pearl and Garnet were alien superheroes in a group called the Crystal Gems and they protect the Earth from monsters that totally exist.

On one point, not only does this revelation complicates matters in regards to her mission but it's also making Sam re-value the meaning of her life, which is something that she does not want to do. Ever. On the other hand, it's really, really cool to know that you have another member in your family to continue the legacy and stuff. Especially when said family member is half-alien.

Sam's flexed out her hand _again_ and rotated her shoulder against the fabric of Greg's van's passenger seat. "Huh." She said and Greg lightly chuckled. "Feels weird, doesn't it?" he asked and Sam shrugged.

"Yeah and I still can't get over that the doctor is so cool with all of this."

Greg outright laughed at that. "Well, you'll get used to it. We all did." Sam glanced over to her brother curiously. "You mean it hasn't always been like this?"

Greg shook his head and turned the wheel over by the corner of the street. "Steven was a pretty normal baby as far as babies go. All the magic things started just a little bit after his thirteenth birthday." He answered. Sam hummed and turned her gaze outside the window and the lyrics of the song playing on the radio took over her thoughts. The comfortable silence between them stayed until they finally reached the front of Sam's mansion.

"Here we are," Greg pitched in, breaking the silence as he looked over towards his sister. "You need help getting out?"

Sam rolled her eyes. "Dude, were you not there when the nice doc said that my arm was healed?" She replied and Greg huffed. "I get it that you're worried about me but I'm not three anymore, Gregory. By the way, I really hope you've been taking good care of my house while I was gone- and my car." Sam's eyebrows narrowed in between her eyes and suddenly she hissed. "If I found out anything happened to my car while I was gone, you better wish I had never found you in this place, get it?"

Greg was surprised for a short moment but he nodded his head anyway, nervously. Sam got out of the van and the both of them headed to the front door. She turned the handle and was shocked to find it unlocked. "Why on Earth didn't you lock the door?" she demanded. "Someone could've broken in while you were gone! I have my laptop in here!"

"Sam, chill out." Greg tried assuring her. "I had Steven watch over the place while we were gone. Besides, the house's too far away from the neighbourhood for anyone to do anything to it anyway."

"And that's supposed to make me feel better _how_?"

Greg shrugged as Sam pushed the door open… and was promptly knocked to her feet through some kind fast-moving, unseen force. Sam choked for air as a pair of strong limbs encircled her rib cage and restricted her breathing.

"SAM! YOU'RE HOME!"

Sam gasped as she tried fighting against a nasty cough and it'd taken a very concerned Greg to pry his son off her younger sister. Steven immediately complied, with a mixed expression of extreme guilt as he profusely apologized as Greg helped Sam get back on her feet.

"Steven," she gasped out and pushed her hair out of her eyes. Cheeks flushed as she rubbed down her chest, Sam gave him a wobbly smile. "I'm fine." She assured him. "That's some muscles you got on those hands, kiddo."

He looked embarrassed, she noted, his expression laced with regret as rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "I'm really, really sorry Sam." Good Lord, now he sounded like he was about to cry.

"No no no," she cooed. "It's okay. Steven, I'm okay."

"Really?"

"Yeah, kid. Really." She was eager to change the topic, eager to get the tenseness out of the air and their systems before it could grow worse. "So, which room in the house are you staying in?"

Steven's face quickly took in an expression of hope and marvellous wonder. " _I get to have a room in your house?"_ He questioned her and Sam gave her brother a narrow-eyed look of slight ire. "You mean you did not stay here with your dad while I was at the hospital?"

"I-I hadn't wanted to intrude…"

Sam sighed. "Kid, whatever's mine here also technically belongs to my brother, which means it's also yours by extension. Of course, I'd still give you a room in the house anyway if it weren't Greg's because… well, you know, we're family."

Steven gaped at her. Then to her surprise, he hugged her again; softer this time. "I love you, Sam."

Sam chuckled and ruffled his hair once he'd let her go and lead him to the stairs. Before they went up, however, she turned her head and looked past her shoulder to Greg.

"You coming, Greg?"

Greg looked his sister in the eyes and Sam softly smiled at him. What had he done to deserve her? What had he done that'd merited her being so nice towards him and his son? How could she, after he'd left her alone with their father, after he'd left her to shoulder his misery alone, treat him as if nothing had happened?

It'd left him frustrated and with no little amount of guilt, ever since they'd have their talk the other day. And it scared him to no end. After all, there's always calm before any storm. Greg doesn't want to lose this- this relationship between them, but he knows it'll come eventually. He shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"Dad, you're not coming?"

"What?" Greg called in disbelief. "Of course I am. Can't let you two have fun without me, after all."

…

Steven had chosen himself a basic room near Greg's and after dropping off Sam's stuff from the hospital in her own room, they'd went downstairs for dinner. Sam had managed to get Steven agree to stay over for the night and Greg told her that they'll drive over to the temple for Steven's stuff afterwards.

"So these people are really our family?" Steven asked as they progressed through the portraits along the walls to the kitchen. Greg nodded. "Yeah, kiddo. The Universe is a very large family. Geez, it's been really a long time since I last seen or met with any of them."

Steven was curious. "You mean there are still others in our family out there that's still… alive?" He licked his lips as Sam chuckled and crossed her arms across her chest. "Yeah, Steven. And maybe one day you'll even get to meet them too." There was a pause before Steven gave the sibling duo a look. "So, which one was yours dad?"

Sam and Greg froze. They held a silent conversation through exchanged looks and Greg eventually gave in due to Steven being his son. "C'mere, son." He said after clearing his throat. "It's right over here." His sister followed quietly behind them and pushed her hands down into her pockets. The picture was met with total and absolute silence as Steven took in the young faces of his father and his aunt and his grandparents.

"I… look like you," he stated quietly, to the agreement of Greg and Sam. "And you look like… grandma, dad. And Sam, you look like… grandpa."

"Grand _father,_ Steven." Sam corrected him sternly, which made the boy flinch back in surprise at her tone. "He'd wanted you to call him grandfather." She justified herself. Steven's eyes widen in realization. "You mean he's still-"

"Yes," she answered simply, but did not elaborate. It was obvious that the topic of his grandfather was something that deeply unsettled Greg and Sam, so Steven decided not to push it; no matter how interested he was about the whole thing. Sam sighed. "So, are we done here? 'Cause I think there's pizza calling my name and it's weird that I'm not already on my way to the boardwalk."

"Yup," Greg quickly interrupted. "We're going. We're taking my van too because I don't think Sam's car is suitable for driving on sand."

They got out the door and Sam made sure to lock it as Greg started the engine. They buckled up and Greg finally drove out the gate.

"So, Steven; tell me more about the Crystal Gems." Sam asked as her fingers turned the knob to turn down the radio's volume. The boy perked up in his seat and Greg was thankful for the distraction. Knowing Steven, he probably felt guilty to have made Sam feel bad back at the house. He shot his sister an approving smile and began to softly hum along to the song, nodding his head.

"Wow, where should I start? Sam, who do you wanna know about first?"

"What about the tall one?"

"Garnet? Or Pearl?"

Sam paused as she considered her choices and bit onto her lip. "Square afro and shades; Garnet right?" Greg chuckled. "Glad to know you remembered, Sam. Though it would've been interesting to see you embarrass yourself when you get the names wrong."

"Go die in a hole, Greg."

Steven was aghast. "Sam! That's not nice!" Sam rolled her eyes. "A word to the young, Steven. A sibling is the only one in the family who can say bad stuff to you like that and get away with it." She nudged Greg with her hand and winked. "Right Greg?"

"Steven, don't listen to her. Insulting people is bad."

" _Insulting people is bad,"_ Sam mimics him and snorted. "Geez, what a loser. Tell me about Garnet, Steven."

Steven opened his mouth really wide and for a moment, Sam was concerned if it meant that the boy was secretly not getting enough air. "Garnet is the unofficial leader of the Crystal Gems," he began suddenly. "She is a fusion made of love from two other gems named Ruby and Sapphire. Garnet's weapons are gauntlets, and she has awesome future vision!"

"Fusion of… love? Is that like se-"

The van suddenly swerved dangerously to the left, causing Steven and Sam to shriek very loud in fear and hold onto each other. Greg's face was red, and his eyes as wide as saucers as he quickly regained control of the wheel. Then, like some professional drift driver, Greg landed the vehicle at the side of the road and shifted the gear to park. His chest heaved with heavy breaths and he took the time to calm himself down before turning his head to look at the two people by his side.

Sam and Steven were as white as ghosts and they trembled as they held onto one another for life. Sam's left eye twitched like mad and Steven had anime tears coming out of his eyes. Greg winced and hissed in guilt, before he rubbed the back of his neck. "Heh, sorry guys; a cat suddenly shot into the middle of the road and I didn't want to hit it."

There were sounds of cracking bones as Sam turned her stiff neck to glare at her brother and shook a fist towards him. "Y-you… you… son of a-"

"Drive, dad!" Steven suddenly interrupted, causing Greg to slam his leg down onto the pedal and the van started moving again. An uncomfortable silence dawned into the atmosphere as aunt and nephew repeatedly drew in deep breaths and Greg gulped. No word was said after that incident and Sam swore that she'd get her brother back for that scare.

"It won't be long now," The portly man informed his sister as their journey continued onto sand and Sam nodded when she could hear the sounds of waves as they crashed onto the shores and birds squawking in the air. Greg hummed on a familiar little tune as he drove on… and on… and on… and-

 _Whoa._

There, at the side of the cliff, was the surreal sight of the biggest statue of a… woman Sam had ever set her eyes on. It had long, curly hair and six arms and was dressed in a tunic-like dress with a mask over its face. And at the centre, was a hut.

A freaking, honest-to-goodness beach hut.

Steven laughed as he jumped out the van door and pulled on Sam's hand roughly. Not taking her eyes off the marvel, she slowly peeled herself off the seat and her feet dropped onto the sand with a soft 'thud!' At her side, Greg chuckled as he patted her shoulder.

"Welcome to the Temple."

* * *

 **Comments, reviews? Please and thank you. I also understand if you guys wanna like bash me for posting this chapter late, so knock yourselves off.**


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